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Current Affairs

MONTHLY ISSUE - APRIL-2015

Banking | Railway | Insurance | SSC | UPSC | OPSC

NEW SECTIONSA Complete Magazine for all Competitive Exams

Leading Institute for Banking, Railway & SSC

P u b l i c a t i o n s

Events of the monthVanik’s Page

200 Updated MCQs

100 One Liners

40 MCQs on Computers

100 GK for SSC & Railway

Vanik’s

Budget Special

VANIK'S PAGEFailures Who Became Inspirational Success Stories

1. Mahatma Gandhi

His is perhaps the most inspirational tale. Originally a barrister in India by profession, he was not

a strong lawyer as he was unable to cross-question his witnesses. After spending sometime

drafting litigation letters, he went to South Africa where he developed his political skills. It was

not a cake-walk for him even there and his Satyagraha movement was fraught with difficulties

even in India. Perhaps his biggest failure of all times was the partition of India and Pakistan.

A blockbuster performer at the Bollywood box-office, Amitabh Bachchan's career tanked along with his production house, Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited (ABCL). His meteoric rise and quick downfall is a true Bollywood tale within Bollywood. He was bankrupt but did not give up and continued to fight. It was at this crucial juncture when his career took at 360 degree turn with the arrival of KBC series in India and slowly, he once again rose to the top. Big B truly proved that nothing, not even a simple desi hairoil advert is "beneath" you but in any profession respect is earned by your skills and your attitude.

Who doesn't know the name Reliance today? But do you know, that Dhirubhai Ambani, the founder of Reliance was perhaps controversy's favourite child? Ambani had a humble beginning and he was not from an affluent background. He moved to Yemen at 16 years of age where he worked as a simple clerk. However, he knew he had to follow his calling and risking everything, he returned to India to set up his business with his close friend. Though Champaklal Damani differed from Ambani in his views and decided to split, Ambani did not give up hope and continued his trade, deciding to even enter the stock market. His stock market dealings and success have often been questioned but the man rose to power through sheer grit and determination.

What do you do when you have a role model to look up to and then, you are asked to fill the role model's shoes? When Ratan Tata became the chairman in 1991, he had a mammoth task set before him. His futuristic views and liberal attitude did not go well with some of the top honchos at Tata which resulted in a tussle at the management level. At the very start of his career as chairman, two companies under him faced bankruptcy and his employees faith in him dwindled as he brought down the retirement age from 70 to 65, leading to an ouster of some of the oldest employees of the organisation. Despite the many failures he has seen, Tata Nano being the latest, Ratan Tata did not give up and continues to be a global figure even today.

A humble chai-vendor, embroiled in one of the most blood-bathed controversies in the country is today the Prime Minister. Does success need any other definition? When Modi took on the reigns of Gujarat as the Chief Minister from Keshubhai Patel, his rise was met with opposition from many within the party. Modi's lack of experience was one of the major concerns. However, Modi stood his ground and became Gujarat's CM. As the CM, he veered from RSS's ideologies and supported privatisation and small government. But perhaps, his true test came in the form of the Godhra violence. While many still blame him for the riots, his name was cleared and he went to become one of the most powerful men in the country.

Not exactly a failure, but Smriti Irani's tale is definitely a rags to riches with WTF interspersed in between. She got her dream break while waitressing at McDonalds and became one of the best known faces on the small screen playing the role of Tulsi in Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. However, after a fallout with the small screen queen Ekta Kapoor, her career seemed like it would end. But Smriti Irani decided to enter the world of Politics and is today the HRD minister. With no education (or atleast a few fudged degrees) mind you!

Born to humble farmers in UP, Nawazuddin first worked as a chemist in a petrochemical company. Wanting something more interesting, he moved to Delhi to only be a watchman. He developed an interest in theatre in Delhi and moved to Mumbai to try his luck in movies. However, like every struggler, he did not get any good job or any meaty role and kept appearing in small roles. He resorted to conducting acting work shops to earn some money. However, he got his break when he got noticed as a reporter in Peepli Live and there has been no looking back for him since then!

2. Amitabh Bachchan

3. Dhirubhai Ambani

4. Ratan Tata

5. Narendra Modi

6. Smriti Irani

7. Nawazuddin Siddiqui

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CONTENTS

Recent 5 topic International news

National news

Bilateral

Economy and Banking

Award and Honour

Book and Author

Person in news

Places in news

Sports

Science and Technology

Environment and Ecology

Defence

Recent Summit in news

Committee and its Function

International and National institution

Recent visit and visitor

Date and Observation

State news

Recent government devlopement and scheme

200 MCQ current affairs 40 MCQ of Computer

Descriptive English Word of the Month Banking Terminology Abbreviation

Miscellaneous G.K. for SSC and Railway Practice Set for Upcoming Exam Previous Year Question Who’s Who? One Liner

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MAGAZINE FOR THE MONTH OF APRIL ‐ 2015

Leading Institute for Banking, Railway & SSC B – 61 A & B, Saheed Nagar & Plot‐1441, Opp. IOCL Petrol Pump, CRP Square, Bhubaneswar Ph. : (0674) 6556677, 8093556677. Web : www.vanik.org, E‐mail : [email protected]

RECENT TOPICS UNION BUDGET 2015‐16

nion Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

presented Union Budget 2015‐16 in the Parliament, the first full year Budget of the NDA government under leadership of Prime Minister of Narendra Modi and the second budget of Arun Jaitley as Finance Minister. Highlights of Union Budget 2015‐16 Taxation

• No change in the Tax slab on personal income. • IT exemption remain at Rs. 2.5 lakh p.a. and upto

Rs. 5 lakh tax shall be at 10%, Rs. 5 to Rs. 10 lakh 20% and above Rs. 10 lakh lakh at 30% .

• Wealth tax abolished. Additional 2% surcharge for the super‐rich with income more than Rs. 1 crore. For next 4 years, corporate tax has been reduced to 25 percent from present 30 percent.

• Service tax increased to14 per cent from 12%. • Apart from CSR, 100% tax exemption for

contribution to Swachch Bharat Abhiyan have been announced by the Finance Minister.

New Project • 5 more AIIMSs in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab,

Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar and Assam. IIT in Karnataka. While, the Indian School of Mines in Dhanbad, Jharkhand will be converted into IIT.

• 2 more IIMs in Jammu and Kashmir and Andhra Pradesh. Post‐Graduation Institutes of Horticulture in Amritsar, Punjab. University of Disability Studies will be established in Kerala.

• In Arunachal Pradesh, Centre of Film Production, Animation and Gaming will come up.

• For Infrastructure sector Rs. 70,000 crores allocated. Projects in rail, road and irrigation bonds will be tax free. Infrastructure development through PPP model will be revitalised and government will bear majority of the risk.

• Atal Innovation Mission will be established to draw on expertise of researchers and entrepreneurs to foster scientific innovations. For this mission Rs. 150 crore allocated.

• 5 ultra‐mega power projects each of 4000MW proposed by Government

Defence • Rs. 2,46,726 crore has been allocated for Defence

of India which is 9.87 per cent greater than last year. Make in India campaign will take into consideration for speedy manufacturing of Defence equipment.

Welfare Schemes and new programmes • Under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, six crore toilets

across the country will be built. • By 2020, housing for all have been declared. • MGNREGA will get of Rs. 5,000 crore. Which is

highest allocation to this scheme. • To improve quality of life of common man, GST and

JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar and Mobile) will be launched.

• To encourage first generation SC/ST entrepreneurs, MUDRA bank will provide finance.

• Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) will be further expanded to 10.3 crore from 1 crore.

• Government will contribute 50% of the premium limited to Rs. 1,000 a year for the Atal Pension Yojana.

• Rs. 9,000 crore unclaimed funds in PPF/EPF will be used for Senior Citizens Fund.

• For all Indian, government will create universal social security system.

• For electric cars production Rs. 75 crore has been allocated.

• Renewable energy target for 2022: 60K MW in wind; 10K MW in biomass, 100K MW in solar and 5K MW in small hydro plants.

• Under the new tourism scheme, development of churches and convents in old Goa; Hampi, Elephanta caves, , Jallianwala Bagh, Forests of Rajasthan, Leh palace, Varanasi Qutb Shahi tombs at Hyderabad.

• Visa on Arrival (VoA) facility to be increased for 150 countries from present 43 countries.

• As an alternative to purchasing gold, Sovereign Gold Bond will be launched.

• In order to facilitate depositors of gold to earn interest and jewellers to obtain loans on their metal accounts new scheme will be launched.

• Forward Markets Commission (FMC) will be merged with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

• Under SARFAESI Act 2002, NBFCs registered with the RBI having asset size of Rs 500 crore and above to be considered as financial institution for mid‐corporate businesses and fund SME.

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• For Rural Infrastructure Development Bank, Rs. 25,000 crore allocated.

• To support Micro Irrigation Programme, Rs. 5,300 crore allocated.

• Deduction for pension raised from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakh per annum. Provision of Rs. 2 lakh accident cover at Rs. 12 p.a. premium. Life insurance cover of Rs. 2 lakh at the premium of Rs. 330 p.a.

• Rs. 1000 cr. for the Nirbhaya Fund for women safety.

• Nai Manzil scheme for skill upgradation among the minority community.

• Total subsidity has been projected at 13.72% of the total expenditure for 2015‐16 which was 14% the previous year.

RAILWAY BUDGET 2015‐16

nion Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu presented Narendra modi led BJP government first fully fledged

Rail Budget in the Parliament. He presented a passenger friendly budget by ruling out any further hike in ticket fares but went high on raising passenger comfort through greater cleaness on train and sanitation, enhancing safety level, time between metro by introducing bullet like train and

declared that Rs 8.5 lakh crores would be invested in the next five year to up amenities.Fare was spared mainely due to falling oil prices which include

diesel,the life line of Indian railway. Railway Fares

• No new trains in the budget. • No new hike in passenger fares. • While, the Freight fares have been raised incase of

urea by 10%, iron and steel by 0.8%, kerosene and cooking gas by 0.8%, coal by 6.3% and cement by 2.7%.

Railway Finances

• Plan Budget is gone up by 52 percent Rs. 100011 crore for financial year 2015‐16 compared to Rs. 65789 crore in FY 2014‐15.

• For next five year envisaged investment for railways is Rs. 8.5 lakh crore rupees. Funds for railways will be raised from pension, institutional and multilateral agencies.

• In order to improve passenger amenities, MPs have been requested to use part of their MPLAD funds in railway.

• Railways to set up an infrastructure fund and holding company to raise long‐term debt.

Passengers Amenities • 120 days in advance ticket booking facility for

passengers instead of earlier 60 days. Railways is aiming to move towards paperless ticketing.

• Operation 5 minutes‐ Passengers can buy railway tickets within five minutes. SMS updates to inform passengers about any change in schedule of trains. Open wi‐fi facility at 400 railway stations.

• Mobile charging units will be installed. For women safety CCTVs to be installed in selected trains and suburban trains.

• Food ordering facility while booking tickets through IRCTC website. Water‐vending machines to be set up at stations. 138 will be a nationwide 24×7 helpline number for railway‐related queries.

• While, 182 will be a toll‐free number for security‐related issues. On‐board entertainment in Shatabdi Express.

Infrastructure • Track capacity will be increased by 10% to 1.38

lakh km. • Speed of passenger trains on 9 corridors will

increased to 160‐200 km/h from 110‐130 km/h. • Wagon‐making scheme will be reviewed in order

ease private investment by inviting open bids, station redevelopment policy will be revamped.

• 10 satellite railway terminals will be developed in major cities in 2015‐16. PPP cell of Indian Railways will be revamped.

• Feasibility report of high‐speed train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad expected by mid‐2015. Connectivity to North‐East India will be improved. In J&K rail connectivity will be on focus.

Tourism • Railways will promote Gandhi circuit in order to

mark centenary year of Mahatma Gandhi’s return from South Africa.

• Special travel scheme Kisan Yatra for farmers for farming and marketing technique centres. Under Incredible India, Incredible Rail will be launched.

LAND ACQUISITION AMENDMENT

he NDA govt. under Narendra Modi has promulgated an ordinance making significant changes in the Land

Acquisition Act 2013 including removal of consent clause for acquiring land for five areas of industrial corridors, PPP projects, rural infrastructure, affordable housing and defence.

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The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, decided to amend the Act to bring under its purview 13 central legislations, including those relating to defence and national security, to provide higher compensation and rehabilitation and resettlement benefits to farmers whose land is being acquired. The government decided to relax certain provisions of the Act and add Section 10 A to the legislation keeping in the mind development needs of the society. As per the amended provision the mandatory "consent" clause and Social Impact Assessment (SIA) will not be applicable if the land is acquired for five purposes including national security, defence, rural infrastructure including electrification, industrial corridors and building social infrastructure including PPP where ownership of land continues to be vested with the government. However, the compensation and rehabilitation and resettlement packages will be applicable as per the new Land Acquisition Act for acquiring land for these purposes. As per the changes brought in the ordinance, multi‐crop irrigated land can also be acquired for these purposes which was barred from acquisition as per the 2014 act. passed by the UPA government. The earlier Act provided for consent of 70 per cent of land owners whose land is acquired for PPP projects and 80% land owners consent was mandatory for land acquired for private projects. As per the new ordinance there is a mandatory condition for provision of job for those whose land is acquired for industrial corridors. With this decision, rehabilitation and resettlement and compensation provisions of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 will be applicable for the 13 existing central pieces of legislation including the Coal Bearing Areas Acquisition and Development Act, 1957, the National Highways Act, 1956 and the Land Acquisition (Mines) Act, 1885. NDA Government has Justified certain amendments in the Act "in order to remove" many difficulties which have been reported and certain amendments have been made to further strengthen the provisions to protect the interests of the 'affected families in addition, procedural difficulties in the acquisition of land required for important national projects required has been eliminated. The govt. declaration said the present changes allow a fast track process for defence and defence production, rural infrastructure including electrification, housing for poor including affordable housing, industrial corridors and infrastructure projects including projects taken up under

Public Private Partnership mode where ownership of the land continues to be vested with the government". The government further said these projects are essential for bringing in better economic opportunities for the people living in these areas and would also help in improving quality of life. The government said the present amendments bring all those exempted 13 Acts under the purview of this Act for the purpose of compensation as well as rehabilitation and resettlement. Therefore, the amendment benefits the farmers and the affected families. With the changes, the R & R (rehabilitation and resettlement) and compensation provisions of the Act will be applicable to the laws including the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, the Indian Tramways Act, 1886, the Railways Act, 1989, the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, the Petroleum and Minerals Pipelines (Acquisition of Right of User in Land) Act, 1962 and the Damodar Valley Corporation Act, 1948. The opposition to these changes have surfaced from the Congress led UPA, other major opposition parties and even the Civil Society, Civil Society activist Anna Hazare started his two day protest meeting in Delhi and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal support Anna Hazare on his mission. In the absence of a consensus among the political parties on the ordinance, the NDA govt. is exploring the option to call a joint session of both the Hawses of Parliament to pass the ordinance into an act. AAP KI SARKAR IN DELHI

lection Commission of India (ECI) has declared the results of Delhi Legislative Assembly election 2015. Aam

Aadmi Party (AAP) headed by social activist turned politician Arvind Kejriwal with 67 seats has emerged as the largest party in the house of 70 seats and Arvind Kejriwal is going to took oath as Chief Minister on 14 February 2015 at Ramlila Maidan, Delhi. Key facts

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won record 67 seats with record vote share of 54.2% percent. It should be noted that AAP become the 1st party in Delhi to win with record 67 seats with more than 50% vote share in history of assembly elections. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 3 seats with vote share of 32.3% percent. While other big parties like Indian National Congress (INC), Bahujan Samaj Party

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(BSP), Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) etc were not able to win single seat in this election. Congress which was ruling the state just before saw its worst performance with only 9.7% vote and no seat to its credit.

Delhi Legislative Assembly election was held on 7 February 2015 to elect 70 members of the Delhi Legislative Assembly. Voter turnout for this election was recorded 67.14%, it was highest voter turnout in history of Delhi Legislative Assembly elections. In this election Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Indian National Congress (INC) had contested 70 seats. While, Bharatiya Janata Party had contested 67 seats and its ally Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had contested 3 seats. Arvind Kejriwal‐led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) swept to power in Delhi on 10 February 2015 by winning 67 of the 70 Assembly seats that went to polls on 7 February. Its main opponent BJP was reduced to just 3 seats while Congress was decimated to zero. The unprecedented result of this election is the second biggest sweep in Assembly elections in India. AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal won from the New Delhi constituency with a margin of over 31 thousand votes in Delhi Assembly elections. However his main opponent Kiran Bedi of BJP and Congress’ stalwart Ajay Maken received shock defeats. Bedi and Maken lost from Krishna Nagar and Sadar Bazar constituency respectively. (Arvind Kejriwal won from New Delhi constituency with a margin of 31,583 votes. He defeated BJP’s new entrant Nupur Sharma. Kiran Bedi was defeated by AAP’s SK Bagga (Advocate) from BJP’s strongest and traditional seat of Krishna Nagar by 2,277 votes. Congress’s Ajay Maken was decimated to third place in Sadar Bazar constituency with AAP’s Som Dutt winning the seat by over 34 thousand votes.) Delhi‘s opposition in the Assembly was reduced to just three members as AAP won 67 of the 70 seats. The three BJP leaders who made it to the Assembly despite the huge AAP wave across the city are Vijender Gupta, Jagdish Pradhan and Om Prakash Sharma. Senior BJP leader Vijender Gupta won from Rohini, Jagdish Pradhan from Mustafabad and Om Prakash Sharma from Vishwas Nagar. Any party needs at least 10% of the house strength to qualify for Leader of Opposition. The BJP has not even won seven seats, which means, there will be no opposition party in the assembly and no Leader of Opposition. On coming to power the AAP govt. demanded for full statehood to Delhi, make Delhi corruption free in 5 yrs., reduced electricity bill for domestic consumer upto 400 unit per month by 50% and water and sewerage charges upto

20,000 litres per month totally free as per its electoral promises. So to conclude AAP Ki Sarkar started its reegh keeping the Aam Admi & his welfare in mind. OBAMA’S INDIA VISIT

long with the endorsement of the US for India to be a permanent member of the UN Security Council, the

land mark visited of the US President Barrack Obama to India as chief guest on the occasion of the 66th Republic Day celebration, also resulted in Commitment’s for the Indo‐US partnership in economic progress. Soon after the Air force One landed on the ground, Mr. Modi greeted Mr and Mrs. Obama Breaking the protocol which didn’t conceded the fact that India an US got a great deal of work done. The major takeways from the Obama visit can be briefly Outline as : India will set up an insurance pool led by General Insurance Co. and four other insurance companies of a total amount of Rs.750 crore to make the companies secure, that build reactor against the liability in case of a nuclear accident. By convincing there US counterpart to transfer “risk assessment” to commercial operator, the nuclear logjam on civil nuclear liability was cleared. As a solution to the notorious red‐tapism in India, hotlines have been established. By focusing on the air quality and increasing the share of renewable in the energy basket, India and the US will work together to support India ambitious climate and energy goals. Mr. Modi assured Mr. Obama about a predicable competitive tax regime and a climate with encouraging investment and rewarding enterprise, which will nurture innovation and protect the US intellectual property. PM Modi and President Obama released a joint strategic vision statement for the APEC and Indian Ocean region. Obama has assured PM Modi that he will look into India’s concern on the H‐1B visa issued that has been raised in the context of comprehensive immigration reform. The DTTI (defence Trade and Technology Initiative)will be launched with four “Pathfinder” project will facilitate coproduction of the next generation Raven unmanned air vehicle (UVAs), “roll‐on, roll‐off” intelegency gathering and reconnanssance modulous for C‐130J Super Hercules aircraft ,mobile electric hybrid power source and “uniform integrated protection

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ensemble increment‐2” (Chemical Biological warfare Protection gear for solder). India long pending demand of signing an India‐US “Totalization Agreement”, that will help Indian workers in the US get annual refunds of around 3 Billion dollars worth of social security contribution they make, was approved by the US. The United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) signed Memorandum of understanding (MoUs) to support the development of 3 smart cities Allahabad, Ajmer and Visakhapatnam. President Obama Ended his Visited with a reminder to avoid religious divisions and to promote women empowerment. Nation are strongest when they uphold the equality for all, including women”, Obama said to applause, which was quite inspiring.

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS China opens largest embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan China has opened a new embassy in Pakistan, its “largest overseas” diplomatic mission, which foreign minister Wang Yi described as a symbol of friendship between the “all weather” allies. He also added that “As China’s largest overseas embassy, it is a symbol of friendship between China and Pakistan”. It however did not provide the details of the new embassy. An opening ceremony was held on February 13, during Mr Wang’s visit to Islamabad. China maintains large diplomatic missions abroad including Washington, New York and New Delhi. Its mission in New Delhi has over 300 personnel, according to officials. The opening of the new Islamabad embassy came as China and Pakistan deepen their all weather relations with the construction of the multi‐billion Economic Corridor through the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. The Corridor, which is part of the Silk Road Projects proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping aims to connect China’s Xinjiang with Pakistan Gwadar Port in Balochistan province neighbouring Iran. China also set to construct two 1,100 nuclear reactors with $6.5 billion in addition to the four medium size reactors in Pakistan. Anti‐AUSTERITY Syriza Sweept Greece Parliamentary Poll

The new Greek parliament elected a member of the left‐wing party Syriza, Zoe Konstantopoulou, as its new President. The decision was made by a majority vote: Konstantopoulou received a record number of 235 of 300 deputies’ votes. She is second woman from Greek to be the President of country after Anna Psarouda‐Benaki who was elected in 2004. Zoe Konstantopoulou is also the youngest ever to be elected as President of the Greek Parliament. 40‐year old Alexis Tsipras took oath as Greece’s youngest Prime Minister on 26 January, a day after his leftwing Syriza party swept to a sensational victory in the snap election held in the country on 25 January. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott survived vote of confidence on leadership of Liberal Party

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott survived a vote of confidence motion on spilling the top leadership of Liberal Party. Tony Abbott was elected as the Prime Minister of Australia in September 2013. Abbott’s leadership of the Liberal Party came under challenge after his popularity started slumping in past few weeks over his policy decisions,handling of the economy and for awarding an Australian knighthood to Queen Elizabeth's husband, Prince Philip. Malaysia declared MH370 flight disappearance an accident The Malaysian government officially declared the disappearance of malaysian Airline flight MH370 an accident and said that there were no survivors. The declaration was made by the Director General of Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) Azharuddin Abdul Rahman in accordance with standards of annexes 12 and 13 of the International Civil Aviation. Recently Malaysia was sufferd with three major air crass incident.The First incident was the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 in March 2014 which is consider as worst Aviation Disaster,killing 239 people on board.Second incident was attack on Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 by pro‐Russian rebels over Ukraine in July 2014 and the third was Indonesia's AirAsia flight QZ8501 that crashed in the Java Sea, killing 162 people. EU Decided to lift ban on import of mango from India 28‐member European Union decided to lift seven month long ban on the import of alphonco mangoes from India. The proposal to lift the ban was unanimously voted by the European Commission standing committee on plant health. EU had imposed temporary ban on import of mangoes from 1 May 2014 after authorities in Brussels found consignments of the premium Alphonso mangoes infested with fruit flies. Along with Alphonso mangoes they also had banned import of 4 vegetables‐ aubergines, bitter gourds, snake gourds and patra leaves

Pakistan has banned the Jamaat‐ud Dawa (JuD) and the Haqqani network after the US insisted it do so The Haqqani Network, founded by

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Jalaluddin Haqqani, has been blamed for some of the most heinous attacks on the US—led foreign forces in Afghanistan. It was designated as a terrorist organisation by the US in September 2012.The Ministry has also banned Harkat‐ul‐Jihad Islami, Harkat‐ul‐Mujahideen, Falah‐i‐Insaniat Foundation, Ummah Tameer‐i‐Nau, Haji Khairullah Hajji Sattar Money Exchange, Rahat Limited, Roshan Money Exchange, Al Akhtar Trust, Al Rashid Trust. With the ban these organisations become unlawful element and its leaders and members can be arrested. Five‐day conference in Nepal to discuss wildlife poaching. Officials and experts from 13 countries including India discused ways to combat poaching during five‐day symposium on “Towards Zero Poaching in Asia” .This aimed at promoting Asia‐wide operations to combat poaching of endangered species such as tigers, rhinos and elephants.It was co‐hosted by World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Global Tiger Forum (GTF), National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) and South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network (SAWEN). Among the Tiger Range Countries that participated in this Zero Poaching in Asia symposium, Nepal is the only country to achieve zero poaching. China overtakes U.S. as world's top investment magnet ‐ U.N. China is now the number one destination in the world for foreign investment,while Hong Kong is following as second with $111bn. China overtakes US as the top destination for foreign direct investment (FDI), for the first time since 2003 according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development,UNCTAD. Hence the UNCTAD noted that Last year, foreign firms invested $128bn (£84,8bn) in China and $86bn in the US, While the manufacturing slowed, the growth in China’s foreign investment benefited the services sector.Globally, foreign investment fell by 8% to a total of $1.26tn last year,making the second lowest level since the start of the financial crisis, partly due to the “fragility” of the global economy last year amid geopolitical risks.

Bangladesh Cabinet approved National ICT Draft Policy 2015 Bangladesh Cabinet approved the draft of National Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Policy, 2015. The draft seeks establishment of a transparent and accountable government through ICT expansion to enhance the standards of citizen service. The approval was given during the weekly meet of the cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The meeting was held at Bangladesh Secretariat. Before finalisation and clearance, the draft proposal was consulted by the stakeholders. Tunisia Parliament Endorsed Historic Coalition Government Tunisia's parliament approved a coalition government led by the secular Nidaa Tounes party and including moderate

Islamist rivals Ennahda, following landmark elections in the birthplace of the Arab Spring. "The motto of this government will be work, then work and nothing other than

work," pledged Prime Minister Habib Essid, an independent. His is the first government to be formed after the North African country's first free presidential and parliamentary elections last year. Cipla Wins $189 M Global Fund Tender For AIDS Drugs In a significant development in the treatment of AIDS patients, Indian pharmaceutical major Cipla has been awarded $188.95 million (around Rs. 1,172 crore) by Global Fund ARV (anti‐retroviral) tender. Earlier, Cipla had played a pioneering role in supplying cheaper HIV/AIDS treatment. In 2001, Cipla was first pharmaceutical company to offer ARV drugs at a fraction of the cost in Africa. Since then, it had offered a triple combination ARV at less than a dollar a day and has treated several million patients. Global fund operates in a partnership model between governments, civil society, private sector and people to accelerate the end of diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. Russian Central Bank cut its interest rate from 17 percent to 15 percent The Russian Central Bank in the end of January 2015 announced to cut its key interest rate from 17 percent to 15 percent following the fear of recession. The move implies a

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shift in the Bank of Russia's priorities away from clamping down on rising inflation and supporting the ruble, towards trying to support economic activity, which the bank expects to fall sharply in the coming months. US Chamber Releases 3rd Annual International Ip Index, India Ranks 29th

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC), released its third annual International IP Index, ‘UP: Unlimited Potential’, which found that 20 of the 30 economies examined in the Index improved their scores from last year. In this list India is placed at 29th rank among the 30 countries. While, US has been placed at the top in the list and Thailand at last position. India was ranked last in the list in 2012 and 2014 GIPC Index. But in 2015 GIPC Index, India has moved up by 1 position to 29th rank because of steps taken by the Union Government to address the concerns of international community related to the IP rights. US closed its embassy in Yemen The State Department of the United States confirmed that it has closed its Embassy in Yemen and evacuated its staff due to the ongoing political instability and the uncertain security situation.Yemen has been in crisis for months, with Houthi fighters besieging the capital Sanaa and then taking control of the state. US announced new cyber security agency CTIIC to respond to enhanced cyber threats The White House has reportedly announced the formation of a new agency that will foil cyberattacks by sharing intelligence across agencies during a crisis.The new Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center ( CTIIC) will be created as part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and will be structured like the National Counterterrorism Center ( NCTC). Initially, the agency will comprise a staff of about 50 people and have a budget of 35 million dollars, reported.

NATIONAL NEWS PM Narendra Modi inaugurated first renewable energy global investors meet With the aim to evolve innovative financial models for funding and to ensure the partnership of states and the Centre in harnessing renewable energy Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet and Expo (Re‐Invest) 2015 in New Delhi. Germany is the partner country for Re‐Invest 2015 and over 2500 delegates including exhibitors from 45 countries participated in the three day event. The aim of the meet is to evolve innovative financial models for funding and to ensure the partnership of states and the Centre in harnessing renewable energy.Re‐Invest 2015 included several sessions headed by experts from the renewable energy industry, equipment manufacturers. It also include sessions of global financial institutions, Public Sector Enterprises, regulatory authorities, Central and state governments, research institutions and academic. At present, renewable energy contributes over 6 percent of the total power generated in India. Union government is planning to double its share to 12 percent with an investment of $100 billion over the next four‐five years.To increase the share of renewable energy, government also has revised the target of solar power generation from 20,000 MW by 2022 to 100,000 MW by 2020. PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Permanent Judicial Museum at Bombay High Court

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a Permanent Judicial Museum at Bombay High Court located on the ground floor of the heritage building of the court.It is first of its kind

museum in Maharashtra designed by Advocate Rajan Jaykar. It displays antique items,historic and important documents such as the barrister certificates of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr B R Ambedkar, Mohammed Ali Jinnah,Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, K M Munshi and the first Chief Justice of India,M C Chhagla, judgment copies of sedition cases against Lokmanya Tilak and many more associated with the rich history of the 150 year old court.

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The first judicial museum in the country was opened at Supreme Court of India premises in Delhi. It should be noted that Madras high court, Punjab and Haryana high court and Madhya Pradesh high court, also have their own museums displaying their glorious past. Aero India 2015 Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened the Aero India 2015 air show and exhibition at the Air Force Station Yelahanka near Bengaluru. Defence Ministers and officials of equivalent ranks of six countries like USA, Russia, Israel, Germany, U.K. were present. The Indian military planes and helicopters include, the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Dhruv, the Sukhoi‐30 MkI medium fighter and the newly‐purchased Pilatus basic trainer from the IAF and HAL stables. A highly expectant Dassault of France has brought in three Rafale fighters: this plane is shortlisted to be bought for the IAF. Delegates from 109 countries participated in the event and over 700 companies from India and abroad are took part in the exhibition. Railway Minister launched Wi‐Fi broadband services at Ahmedabad station Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu inaugurated the Wi‐Fi facility at Ahmedabad Railway Station. With this, Ahmadabad Railway station joined the Wi‐Fi enabled Railway stations like Bangalore, New Delhi and CST‐Mumbai. Railway Ministry has set a target to provide Wi‐Fi facility at 400 A‐one and A category Railway Stations at the earliest. On the same occasion, he also flagged off two new long distance trains from Ahmedabad, namely Ahmedabad ‐ Chennai Express and Ahmedabad ‐ Darbhanga Jansadharan Express. No proposal to amend n‐liability law: MEA In a press release, a detailed paper titled ‘Frequently Asked Questions and Answers on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act 2010 and related issues‘by Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), made it clear that the government is not making changes to the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damages Act (CLND) 2010. This paper says that the foreign suppliers of the reactors cannot be sued for damages by the victims of a nuclear accident. MEA will read the Act to mean that supplier’s liability is not a mandatory part of the contracts to be signed.

PM Modi Constituted 3 Sub Groups On Central Schemes, Clean India Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi has constituted three sub‐groups of Chief Ministers within National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog at the 1st governing council meting of NITI Ayog in February at Delhi.

First sub‐group‐ It will study the 66 centrally‐sponsored schemes and recommend which schemes should continue, which should be transferred to states, and which to discontinue.

Second sub‐group‐ It will focus on skill development and creation of skilled manpower within states.

Third sub‐group‐ It will decide on the institutional mechanisms to be evolved for Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, so that cleanliness becomes a part of life in perpetuity.

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) has entered into Guinness book of World Record NDA government’s flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) has entered into Guinness book of World Records. As on 17th January 2015, PMJDY has achieved feat of opening of 11.50 crore bank accounts under it in the short span of 5 months since it was launched.It was declared by the Department of Financial Services (Government of India). It was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the goal of eradicating financial untouchability of the poor by opening at least one bank account for every family in the country in less than six months. There by fulfilling financial and banking inclusion. Tiger census report 2014

As per tiger census report 2014, the population of tigers in India has increased from 1,706 in 2011 to 2,226 in 2014.This tiger census report was released by Union environment minister Prakash Javadekar. The latest tiger census figures show that

Karnataka has the highest number of tigers in the age group of 1.5 years and more. It has 408 tigers in that age group. As per new census, India is estimated to be home to around 70% of the world’s tigers.

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India ranks 136 in World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) 2015 In recently released World Press Freedom Index (WPFI), India was placed at 136th rank out of 180 nations surveyed worldwide in terms of press freedom in 2015. In WPFI 2015, India has shown improvement from its rank of 140 in 2014. However, India’s absolute score has declined from 40.34 to 40.49. Top 10 countries: Finland (1st), Norway (2nd), Denmark (3rd), Netherlands (4th), Sweden (5th), New Zealand (6th), Austria (7th), Canada (8th), Jamaica (9th), Estonia (10th). India’s Neighbours: Sri Lanka (165th), Pakistan (159th), Afghanistan (122th), China (176th), Bangladesh (146th). SC sought response from Union Government on making Moral Science a compulsory subject in Schools The Supreme Court (SC) of India sought responses from the Union Ministry of Human Resources Development (HRD) and the Central Board of Secondary Examination (CBSE) on a plea to make Moral Science a compulsory subject in the curricula of Classes I to XII across the country.The bench comprising Chief Justice HL Dattu and Justice AK Sikri issued notices to the Ministry and the CBSE while hearing a PIL filed by lawyer Santosh Singh. CBI to probe RBI, SEBI for turning blind eye on Ponzi scams: SC The Supreme Court of India directed CBI to probe the role of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in the multi‐crore chit‐fund scam. It has directed the CBI to investigate their role for effecting a mechanism.The Supreme Court bench of Justice TS Thakur and Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel in its order said that these regulatory bodies cannot turn a blind eye to the multi‐crore chit‐fund scam spread across several states. The bench observed that it needs to be investigated and there is nothing which remains outside the scope of the investigation.The bench in its ordered referred 9 May 2014 order in which it directed the investigating agency to probe the duping of over 10000 crore rupees through several ponzi schemes in West Bengal, Odisha and Assam.

IRCTC launches cash on delivery system to book train tickets on pilot basis Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has launched cash on delivery (CoD) system for rail ticketing.With this initiative, passengers can now book a rail

ticket online and get it delivered at home where the payment can be made.IRCTC has launched this CoD scheme on pilot basis. Initially, this service will be available in more than 200 cities. Passengers can book a rail ticket 5 days prior to commencement of journey. But CoD scheme will charge additional Rs 40 for the delivery of each Sleeper Class ticket, Rs 60 for an AC class ticket.In this case, passengers can book tickets on IRCTC mobile application or

on web‐portal BookMyTrain.com.IRCTC has authorized Anduril Technologies through their web‐portal (BookMyTrain.com) to

provide CoD services. India signed $8 million loan agreement with World Bank for SLACC Project India has signed a loan agreement worth USD 8 million with World Bank for Sustainable Livelihoods and Adaption to Climate change (SLACC) Project.The agreement was signed by Joint Secretary (MI) in Ministry of Finance Tarun Bajaj and World Bank's India Country Director Onno Ruhl. The pact is aimed at improving adaptive capacity of the rural poor engaged in farm‐based livelihoods to cope with climate change and scale up the demonstrated best practices and lessons into the government of India's National Rural Livelihoods Mission. National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) is the implementing agency of SLACC. Union Approved 850cr Rupees For Development Of Andhrapradesh Union Government on February 2015 approved a development package and add hoc support of 850 crore rupees for Andhra Pradesh. The development package was provided for the development of backward areas and Rayalaseema and North Coastal region of the State. Under Sections 46 (2) and 46(3) of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, Union government is committed to provide the development package. Out of the total 850 crore rupees, 350 crore rupees will be provided for the development activities in seven backward districts of the State and 500 crore rupees will be provided as an ad hoc support for bridging the resource gap that might have arisen in the Union Budget 2014‐15.

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Packaging of foodgrains & sugar in jute material mandatory: CCEA

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has made packaging of foodgrains & sugar in jute material mandatory. In this regard CCEA mentioned that packaging with

jute material will be mandatory for minimum 90 per cent of production in case of food grains and 20 per cent in case of sugar production.With this decision, government is seeking to help the jute sector which generates a lot of livelihoods for farmers and workers. CCEA also has approved providing financial support to the Jute Corporation of India (JCI). In this regard, government will provide subsidy to JCI on a continuous basis to off‐set the losses on account of Minimum Support Price (MSP) operations.The quantum of subsidy will include the difference between the Purchase and Sale Price of MSP Raw Jute. Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) India ranked 78th globally in Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) 2014 list of 93 countries in terms of talent competitiveness of its human capital. Switzerland, Singapore ranked 1st and 2nd position while India neighbour country ranked as China (41th), Sri Lanka (76th), Pakistan (89th), and Bangladesh (90th). Prasar Bharati warned from sharing 2015 WC feed with cable operators The Delhi High Court has banded Prasar Bharati from sharing with cable operators through Doordarshan the live feed of the upcoming Cricket World Cup, of which ESPN and Star have the exclusive broadcasting rights. The court passed the order on the plea of BCCI, ESPN and Star who had contended that cable TV operators were getting live feeds through DD channels free of cost, resulting in loss of revenue for them. All‐women contingent marched on 66th Republic Day parade For the first time in the history of India’s Republic Day, all‐women contingent from the three forces Army, Air Force and Navy marched down in the parade.

• Army contingent was led by Capt Divya Ajith.

• Navy contingent was led by Lt Commander Sandhya Chauhan.

• Air Force contingent was led by Squadron Leader Sneha Shekhawat.

Bengaluru, Chennai, Surat among ‘100 Resilient Cities’ In its centenary year in 2013, the Rockefeller Foundation announced the 100 Resilient Cities project with a $100 million commitment to build urban resilience worldwide. The idea behind choosing is that cities have complex ecosystems and have a hard time organising themselves around what their key challenges are and the second is that too often the cities don’t access the resources or best practices efficiently enough. The project consists hiring of a Chief Resilience Officer (CRO) in each city, or a senior person to work in municipal government usually with mayors, or in the Indian context, probably more with the commissioners with the breadth and gravitas to work across the sectors and silos and engage with private sector and civil society. Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports revised Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar Scheme The Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports revised the Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar Scheme. In the revised scheme, the Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar will be given in four categories, and they are

• Identification and nurturing of budding/young talent

• Encouragement of sports through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

• Employment of sportspersons and sports welfare measures

• Sports for Development IIT Bombay launched Mass Open Online Courses (MOOC) Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay has launched Mass Open Online Courses (MOOC) in three subjects, such as computer programming, thermodynamics, and signals and systems. It aims to provide mass online education programme that will provide free online courses by giving access to high quality, IIT‐style education to Indian students in Indian language.

BILATERAL 5th India‐Myanmar Joint Trade Committee Meeting The 5th India‐Myanmar Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting was held in Myanmar’s administrative capital Nay Pyi Taw which was co‐Chaired by

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India’s Minister of Commerce & Industry Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman and Myanmar Union Minister of Commerce U Win Myint. The JTC meeting had the following agendas and agreements included in the discussions: • find ways and means to enhance the bilateral trade and

investment ties • cooperation in removing bottlenecks that hampers

growth in bilateral trade and investment, i.e. lack of good connectivity, lack of banking arrangement for regular and border trade

• commitment of both countries towards strengthening mutually beneficial relationships; promoting two‐ways investment, infrastructure development promoting border trade, connectivity, agriculture, energy, skill and entrepreneurial development, pharmaceutical and people‐to‐people dealings

China has proposed a triangular partnership with India and Sri Lanka • Amid border related

controversies between China and India, Beijing has proposed at triangular partnership with India and Sri Lanka. The ‘offer’ came ahead of a month‐end visit to Beijing of the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera.

• China’s new strategic construct of inclusive ties with India and Sri Lanka follows its advocacy of the 21st century Maritime Silk Road (MSR), where India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan are visualized as partner countries in South Asia. While India is connected to the MSR through the Bangladesh‐China‐India‐Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor, China sees Sri Lanka as an important point of trans‐shipment in the global trade network. The Pakistani sea port of Gwadar is also one of the nodes of the MSR. China is planning to connect Gwadar with Kashgar in its Xinjiang Province, is also one of the nodes of the MSR.

China, Russia back India on UN terror resolution targeting Pakistan' In order to corner Pakistan for sheltering and facilitating terrorists involved the 26/11 carnage and other attacks in the country, India seeks to move a resolution in the UN to punish those who shelter and finance terrorism. China and Russia decided to back India for moving this proposal at the United Nations that essentially goes against Pakistan on the issue of terrorism.

At the RIC summit ‐ attended by Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi, his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov and Sushma Swaraj of India ‐ a joint communique was issued which "underlined the need to bring to justice perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of terrorist acts". India, China launched Visit India Year in China India and China jointly launched the Visit India Year in China in Beijing during the visit of Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to China.The initiative aimed at enhancing the flow of tourists from China to India and to strengthen the people to people bond. China will support the promotion of Indian tourist resources in its country. The idea of Visit India Year was endorsed by the two countries during the visit of the Chinese President, Xi, Jinping to Delhi in September last year. Mrs Susma Swaraj said that diversity of India in terms of weather, food, languages, culture and religious practices are major attraction for tourists round the year. India, Bangladesh to step up joint border patrolling India and Bangladesh have decided to step up joint patrolling along the boundary to act against criminals and smugglers and enhance cooperation through a coordinated border management plan.These decisions were taken at the India‐Bangladesh Joint Working Group meeting and the Home Secretary‐level talks. India funds Nepal’s Pancheshwar project to counter Kheri floods India will provide fund of Rs 1500 crore to Nepal’s Pancheshwar multi‐purpose project on Mahakali river for

countering the Kheri floods in Uttar Pradesh. After completion the dam will be the second largest dam in the world with a capacity of 6720 Mega Watt (MW) power production.This project will regulate and control the free

flow of Karnali and Mohana rivers which cause floods in Kheri, Pilibhit of Uttar Pradesh and other Terai districts of northern India. It is located at Narayan Ghat of Dharchula on Mahakali River(also known as Kali Ganga in Uttarakhand ) in Nepal. The height of dam is the 315 meters.

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MOU CSIR‐NCL signed MoU with Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Ltd CSIR‐National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR‐NCL) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Ltd (SPMCIL). The MoU is aimed at fostering collaboration on research and exchange of technical expertise in areas of material sciences and testing capabilities for bank notes, security documents and coins. Union Cabinet approved Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Tourism between India and Oman.

The MoU will strengthen cooperation in the field of tourism between tourism ministries of both the countries.The main objectives of the MoU are to

• Expand bilateral cooperation in the tourism sector

• Exchange information and data related to tourism • Encourage cooperation between tourism

stakeholders including hotels and tour operators • Establish exchange programme for cooperation in

Human Resource Development • Invest in the tourism and hospitality sectors

Adani Enterprises, Rajasthan Government signed MoU to set up 10000 MW Solar Park The Rajasthan Government and Adani Enterprises Ltd (AEL) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly set up India’s largest solar park with capacity of 10000 MW of electricity in Rajasthan. MoU was signed by Adani Enterprises CEO Vineet Jain and Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation Managing Director B K Dosi.The joint venture project to set up the solar park includes generation projects and a manufacturing unit for solar module, parts and equipments. The project will be completed in the next ten years. Israel offered expertise to clean up Ganga In an effort to deepen economic cooperation, Israel has offered its expertise and technological capabilities to India in its ambitious drive to clean up the Ganga. A preliminary offer on this was made by Amit Lang, Director‐General of

the Ministry of Economy, Israel led delegation to continue talks on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which both countries had initiated in 2007and also to expand cooperation in the field of water management, waste water treatment.Israel has made significant technological advancement in desalination and drip irrigation with the world’s largest desalination plants and recycles 90 per cent of water for agricultural needs. Mashable partnered India.com for local website US news portal Mashable and India.com have partnered to launch Mashable India, which will have a local editorial team to generate original domestic content.Mashable claims to have 42 million unique visitors a month and 21 million social media followers. India.com is a joint venture of Penske Media Corp. (PMC) and Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.

Reliance Communications and Twitter partnered for ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 Reliance Communications has partnered with Twitter to provide Reliance customers free ICC World Cup coverage without any data charges till March 31. The RCom customers can engage with players, commentators and celebrities and also they can view exclusive pictures and videos from the match for free. Customers who do not have a Twitter account can also access cricket‐related Tweets by logging on to www.rcom.co.in/cricket via their mobile phones.

ECONOMY AND BANKING India’s 2013‐14 GDP growth estimate to 6.9 The Government, sharply revised India’s 2013‐14 GDP growth estimate to 6.9 per cent from 4.7 per cent. The 2012‐13 growth estimate was revised to 5.1 per cent from 4.5 per cent. The estimates released also follow a change in the base year for calculating national accounts to 2011‐12 from 2004‐05 in addition to the routine annual revision.The changes have reduced the gap between the way India calculates GDP and the methodology used by the International Monetary Fund.

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RBI to bring back One rupee notes into circulation The Reserve Bank of India announced that the currency notes of one rupees denomination will be in circulation soon.

The notes will be printed by the Government of India.RBI in its release informed that these currency notes are legal tender as provided in The Coinage Act 2011. It said that the existing currency notes in this denomination in circulation will also continue to be legal tender. In November 1994, printing of one rupee note was stopped mainly due to higher cost and for freeing capacity to print currency notes of higher denomination. RBI increased Foreign exchange remittance limit to $250,000 per person a year The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) doubled the foreign exchange remittance limit upto $250,000 per person a year. Means Indians spend upto this much abroad without permission RBI said during its bimonthly monetary policy review. Now they can buy property, hold shares or debt instruments, or any other assets or purchase gifts abroad up to limit of $250,000 (Rs 1.5 crore) per person per year. This limit was modified under the liberalised remittance scheme (LRS). Previously the limit was reduced to $75,000 (Rs 45 lakh) in 2013 following rupee depriciation. Later it was increased to $125000 (Rs 75 lakh) in 2014. RBI governor Raghuram Rajan today that “the lower inflation has helped keep the rupee stable and macro‐economic environment of the country has also improved. The current account deficit is likely to be 1.3 per cent this year and perhaps could be even lower next year”. RBI releases Rs 42,000 crore to fund FY16 growth

Banks will have headroom to lend an additional Rs 42,000 crore because of Reserve Bank of India’s move to bring down by 50 basis points the statutory liquidity ratio — the portion of deposits that banks must invest in government bonds. Although the RBI governor

Raghuram Rajan left key rates unchanged he surprised markets by bringing down the SLR prescription for banks to 21.5% from 22% earlier. The repo rate the rate at which it lends overnight funds to banks unchanged at 7.75%. RBI also retained the cash reserve ratio the portion of deposits that banks have to maintain with RBI at 4%. In the short‐term the reduction in SLR is not going to make a difference to most banks. This is because banks have invested in

government bonds far in excess of what they are required to. The central bank expects that economy growth will pick up to 6.5% in FY16 which will result in an increased demand for funds in the banking sector. The cut in SLR is expected to help banks prepare their cash reserves to fund this growth. Govt announced capital influsion of Rs 699o cr in public sector bank The government announced a capital infusion of Rs.6990

crore in nine state run banks, including State Bank of India (SBI) and Punjab National Bank (PNB), but based

on new efficiency parameters such as return on assets and return on equity. The beneficiaries are,

• State Bank of India – Rs 2,970 crore • Bank of Baroda – Rd 1,260 crore • Punjab National Bank – Rs 870 crore • Canara Bank – Rs 570 crore • Syndicate Bank – Rs 460 crore • Allahabad Bank – Rs 320 crore • Indian Bank – Rs 280 crore • Dena Bank – Rs 140 crore and • Andhra Bank – Rs 120 crore

MahaMobile app launched by Bank for Maharashtra With the perspective to make the bank more efficient and simpler for the customers, Bank of Maharashtra has rolled out a new mobile application Maha Mobile app for its customers. This app will facilitate to access to the banking easily & allow them to view the deposit and loan accounts, do fund transfers, bill payments and much more.The customers using debit card of the bank and having their mobile number registered with the bank can easily avail this facility without the need of visiting the bank branch.

HDFC Bank raised Rs 9,880 crore via share sale HDFC Bank raised Rs 9,880 crore in the largest share sale in the secondary market by a private entity to overseas and domestic investors through a mix of qualified institutional placement and American depository shares. This is the largest share sale by a private sector entity and the second largest fund raising through selling share in the secondary market after the bumper Rs 22,500 crore Coal India issue by the government.Parent HDFC holds 22.47 per cent in the bank, FIIs 33.75 per cent, ADRs/GDRs 16.84 per cent and the rest is held by others.

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PNB raised Rs. 1,000 crore via private placement State‐owned Punjab National Bank said it has raised Rs. 1,000 crore through bonds to fund business growth and meet global capital adequacy norms. Besides, the government has decided to provide Rs. 870 crore to the bank as part of capital infusion plan.Public sector banks require equity capital of Rs. 2.4 lakh crore by 2018 to meet the global, Basel III norms on capital adequacy. For the current fiscal, the government has allocated Rs. 11,200 crore for bank capitalisation. NABARD announced Rs 1,14,927 crore credit plan for Rajasthan National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) announced Rs 1,14,927 crore credit plan for agriculture in Rajasthan for fiscal 2015‐16, encompassing all 33 districts in the state.The credit projections will grow by 39 per cent from Rs 82,534 crore in the ongoing fiscal (2014‐15) to Rs 1,14,927 crore in 2015‐16 for Rajasthan's agriculture and allied sectors. ICICI Bank launched India's first digital bank, named “Pockets” ICICI Bank launched India’s first digital Bank on mobile phone, named “Pockets”. This digital e‐wallet can be downloaded from Google Playstore. Pockets, the digital e‐wallet uses a virtual VISA card that enables the users to

transact on any website or mobile application in India.It requires no documentation or branch visit. Users can also choose to add a zero balance Savings Account to the wallet, which will allow

them to earn interest on their idle money.This e‐wallet allows a person to pay bills, recharge mobiles, book movie tickets order food, send physical & e‐gifts, split and share expenses with friends by using this e‐wallet. HDFC Bank Plans To Introduce Chillr App HDFC Bank, India’s second‐largest private bank, is set to introduce a new app, Chillr, which will allow users to send money to any contact in their phone books, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.Chillr is a third‐party app, which will be available exclusively for the customers. It will

allow them to transfer money using a contact’s mobile number alone. Through the app, one can send Rs 1‐5,000 a day. While the bank will not levy any charges, users will have to pay a fee for using the IMPS platform. Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd, Future Group and Vakrangee apply for set up payments banks. Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd, Future Group and Vakrangee Ltd sought permission from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to set up Payment banks. A payments bank licence will allow companies to accept deposits of up to Rs.1 lakh and increase payment options, especially for people who have no bank accounts. Reliance Industries has teamed up with SBI to apply for a payments bank license.

Looking to foray into banking business, Reliance Industries has teamed up with state‐run behemoth SBI to apply for a payments bank licence.RIL and SBI

put in a joint application to the Resere Bank of India (RBI) to set up a payment bank that can offer services such as remittances and deposits but not loans. The nation's largest lender SBI, which being a commercial bank could not apply for a payment bank license, will hold 30% in the joint venture. RIL will be the promoter and hold the balance 70%. India is ranked no. 16 on leakeecx by HSBC list Secret documents leaked from HSBC's Swiss private bank revealed the names of 1,195 Indians, who hold accounts with the bank that had a combined balance of about $4.1bn for the year 2006‐2007.In comparison, a list based on the documents given by French authorities to the Indian government earlier in 2011 had 628 names.India is ranked No. 16 among the countries with the largest dollar amounts in the leaked Swiss files. CarDekho.com joined hands with Mr. Ratan Tata In a first‐of‐its kind partnership in the Indian auto space, CarDekho.com announced an investment in the company by Ratan Tata, Chairman emeritus of the Tata Sons conglomerate. This comes quick on the heels of the announcement of Series B funding of $ 50 mn from Hong Kong based investors.Tata has for the first time ever joined hands with an auto portal by investing in his personal capacity.GirnarSoft, the parent company of

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CarDekho.com, now valued at USD 300 million, recently concluded its series B funding with a raise of $50 million. The funding was led by Hillhouse Capital with participation from Tybourne Capital and Sequoia Capital. Union Cabinet approved hike in share capital of NMDFC

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval to increase the Authorised Share Capital of the National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC).As per this decision, NMDFC’s Authorised Share

Capital has doubled from Rs. 1500 crore to Rs. 3000 crore. NMDFC is Central Sector Public Enterprise (CPSE) under the aegis of Union Ministry of Minority Affairs to provides loans at concessional interest rates for self‐employment and economic development activities to backward sections of minority communities having family income up to Rs. 1,03,000 in urban areas and Rs. 81,000 in rural areas.In this case minority communities are Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists and Parsis. HAL BAGGED Rs. 1090CR TO SUPPLY 14 DO‐228 AIRCRAFT Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) 2015 bagged a Defence contract of Rs. 1090 crore rupees for supplying 14

Do‐228 aircrafts to Indian Air Force (IAF) along with six reserve engines, one flight simulator and associated equipment. HAL Do‐228 aircraft will be manufactured by the Transport Aircraft

Division (TAD) at Kanpur. Earlier, the division has manufactured 125 HAL Do‐228 aircraft for various defence and other customers and has expertise in manufacturing of transport and trainer category of aircraft. This aircraft has also been exported to Seychelles and Mauritius.

Apple Inc. became first company worth over $700 bn in global corporate history US technology giant Apple Inc. became the first company to reach a market value of $700 billion. It was able to hit this milestone after its shares rose 1.9 per cent and closing at $122.02, which in turn increased company’s market value to $710 billion.Earlier in January 2015, Apple Inc had recorded highest quarterly profit of 18 billion US dollar in corporate history worldwide after the

company sold 74.5 million iPhones in quarter ending December 2014. NEWS IN BRIEF • Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC invested 10.2

billion rupees ($165.5 million) in India's Bandhan Financial Services, which is setting up one of the country's two newest banks.

• Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and China's e‐commerce giant Alibaba has signed an agreement to provide global platform to Indian small and medium enterprises (SMEs).The agreement will facilitate greater economic engagement between Indian and Chinese SMEs.

• The World Bank has released report Scaling the Heights: Social inclusion and sustainable development on Himachal Pradesh by Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dhani Ram Shandil in Shimla.

MERGER, AQUSITION AND TIE UP

Tata Communications Ltd signed 20 million US dollars deal with KION Group Tata Communications Ltd has signed a 20 million US dollars multi‐year deal with Germany‐based KION Group to provide global Wide Area Network (WAN) services to the 280 sites of KION across 30 countries. As part of the deal, Tata Communications will replace the KION Group’s existing stable of multiple WAN providers with a single global network. The deal will allow end users to get faster services with better data management through the Tata Communications WAN platform.The new network will also help KION Group to execute its strategy 2020 plan to create economies of scale across the entire group with its six global and regional brands. The KION Group is the European market leader and the world's second largest global manufacturer of forklift trucks and warehouse technology. Alibaba Aquired 25% Stake In Paytm

Jack Ma’s ALIBABA had signed a deal to buy a 25% stake in Indian mobile payments and ecommerce platform Paytm owner One97 Communications. Paytm is India's largest mobile commerce platform with nearly

25 million orders a month and more than 23 million mobile

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wallet users.As per report Alibaba was looking at investing as much as $575 million (Rs 3,600 crore approximately) in Paytm for a 25‐30 percent stake. Facebook, Reliance Communication tie up to provide free access to Internet Facebook has tied up with Reliance Communications to offer free access to subscribers of Anil Ambani‐led firm to the social networking site as well as about three‐dozen general information websites. Under this initiative both companies aim to bring the power of Internet to a billion people in India by offering free data access to 33 popular websites in order to increase internet inclusion and encourage more Indians to go online. Android based app of Internet.org on smartphones will be also provided for accessing free internet. It should be noted that India will be the first country in Asia to get this app. In the first phase this service has gone live in RCOM’s 7 circles which include Mumbai, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Chennai and Kerala. While in second phase, this service will be launched in pan India by May 2015. Twitter and Google clinched deal to make tweets visible Twitter and Google have signed a deal to make tweets searchable. The tweets will be available in Google search results which will benefit both companies. The deal will

make tweets available outside the Twitter.Both companies by launching this initiative are opening new socioeconomic opportunities to users in fields like

education, information and commerce. It will in turn create more jobs and opportunities in India which is world’s second‐biggest mobile market with Internet. ICICI partnerd with UAE Exchange to offer instant money transfer service ICICI Bank has tied up with UAE Exchange to offer an instant bank transfer service to the Indians residing in the Gulf nation.'FLASHremit' service started by the private sector bank enables customers to conveniently send money instantly to their beneficiaries in India in rupee denominations. Customers will be able to avail this service by visiting any of the over 135 branches of UAE Exchange in UAE including over 15 branches across the Dubai Metro network.

ErosNow tied up with RailTel to provide Streaming Services to Rail Passengers The entertainment platform of Eros International Media, ErosNow tied‐up with RailTel Corporation of India Limited (RailTel) to provide Streaming Services to Rail Passengers through Eros broadband. With the help of this tie‐up, the railway passengers will soon have access to movies, television content, music videos and audio tracks. The broadband streaming services will enable passengers at railway stations to download and view their favourite entertainment content from ErosNow on their smart‐TVs, PCs, laptops, tablets and mobile phones. Muthoot Group partners with WWF for elephant project Kerala‐based business conglomerate Muthoot Group has launched the Friends for Life project in partnership with World Wide Fund (WWF) for Nature‐India.This project aims at effective management of human‐elephant conflict (HEC) to protect the habitats of Asian elephants in six states as 4 priority landscapes and 1 priority site earmarked by WWF‐India.Priority landscapes include North Bank landscape in Arunachal Pradesh, Kaziranga and Karbi‐Anglong in Assam, Terai Arc landscape in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, Western Ghats landscape in Tamil Nadu and Kerala and also some parts of northern West Bengal. This project was launched in Kochi as part of the Muthoot’s Haathi Mera Saathi Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative.This project will address the problems and provide solutions in terms of reducing elephant and human lives lost in the earmarked priority landscapes. It will also secure crop and property damage in villages and build a future where humans and elephants can live in harmony with each other in selected landscapes. NEWS IN BRIEF • Aditya Birla Group firm Grasim Industries has decided

to merge the Rs 1,000‐crore Aditya Birla Chemicals (India), or ABCIL, with itself in line with its vision to unify similar business under one company.

• Online restaurant search service provider Zomato Media Pvt Ltd acquired Turkish company Mekanist for an undisclosed sum. . This is Zomato’s seventh acquisition in six months. Earlier, it acquired US‐based firm Urbanspoon for about 50 million US dollars.

• Pharma giant Pfizer announced to acquire Hospira, a leading provider of injectable drugs and infusion

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technologies, for about $15 billion. Hospira Inc is a provider of injectable drugs and infusion technologies.

• Wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy announced selling 100 per cent stake in its German subsidiary Senvion SE to U.S.‐based Centerbridge Partners for €1 billion euro (about Rs. 7,200 crore) in an all‐cash deal.

• E‐commerce Company Snapdeal signed a 50:50 Joint Venture with television distribution company DEN to launch TV Commerce channel DEN Snapdeal TV shop to create a multi‐nodal electronic shopping avenue for customers and it aims to take the DEN TV shop to 100 million households across India over the next 12 months.

• Leading social networking website Twitter has bought Indian mobile marketing start‐up ZipDial ,which is expected to cost around $34‐35 million(Rs 215 crorer).It will be first Indian technology product startup to be bought by Twitter

• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) have signed a Memorandum of Collaboration to develop indigenous technologies to enhance oil exploration.

AWARD AND HONOUR Padma Awards 2015 President of India announced 104 Padma Awards on the eve of 66th Republic Day. Padma Vibhushan conferred on L.K. Advani, Amitabh

Bachchan, Dillip Kumar & Prakas Singh Badal. 20 persons conferred Padma Bhushan and 75 Padmashree Awards. 17 among the awarders and

are woman and 17 are NRI & PIO and 4 posthumous.President also approved 374 Gallantry Awards and other defence decorations to Armed Forces Personnel. Highest peacetime Gallantry Award has been conferred posthumously to Naik Neeraj Kumar Singh. 3 Kritichakra, 12 Shaurya Chakra, 48 Sena Medals were also declared.Yoga Guru Ramdev & Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravishankar declined the Padma Award.

Ashok Chakra Two army personnel, Major Mukund Varadarajan and Naik Neeraj Kumar Singh were awarded the highest peacetime military

honour, the Ashok Chakra posthumously by President Pranab Mukherjee.The awards were received by their wives at the 66th Republic Day celebrations

72nd Golden Globe Awards The 72nd Golden Globe Awards announced in Beverly Hills, California Coming of age tale "Boyhood" won the coveted Golden Globe for best drama while the quirky period caper "The Grand Budapest Hotel" was the surprise winner for best comedy or musical, in a big upset to awards season front‐runner "Birdman." List of winner • Best Motion Picture‐Drama: Boyhood • Best Actor in a Motion Picture‐ Drama: Eddie

Redmayne, The Theory of Everything • Best Actress in a Motion Picture‐Drama: Julianne

Moore, Still Alice • Best Motion Picture‐Comedy or Musical: The Grand

Budapest Hotel • Best Actress in a Motion Picture ‐ Comedy or Musical:

Amy Adams, Big Eyes • Best Actor in a Motion Picture‐Comedy or Musical:

Michael Keaton, Birdman • Best Animated Film: How To Train Your Dragon 2 • Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: Patricia

Arquette, Boyhood • Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture: J.K.

Simmons, Whiplash • Best Director‐Motion Picture: Richard Linklater,

Boyhood • Best Screenplay: Birdman 57TH GRAMMIES AWARD

Record of the Year ‐ "Stay with Me," Sam Smith Song of the Year ‐ "Stay with Me" (Darkchild Version) Album of the Year ‐ Morning Phase, Beck Best Country Album ‐ Platinum, Miranda Lambert Best New Artist ‐ Sam Smith Best Children's Album ‐ I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education And Changed The World (Malala Yousafzai)

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Bafta Awards • Best Film: Boyhood • Best British Film: The Theory Of Everything • Best Director: Richard Linklater, Boyhood • Best Original Screenplay: The Grand Budapest

Hotel, Wes Anderson • Best Lead Actor: Eddie Redmayne, The Theory Of

Everything • Best Lead Actress: Julianne Moore, Still Alice • Best Animated Film: The Lego Movie, Phil Lord,

Christopher Miller The Lunchbox loses to Polish film at BAFTA

60th Filmfare Awards 60th Filmfare Awards were announced on January 2015 at the Yash Raj Studios in Mumbai. Shahid Kapoor and Kangana Ranaut won the Best Actor Award for Male and Female category, respectively. Best Film: Queen directed by Vikas Bahl Best Director: Vikas Bahl for film Queen Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award: Kamini Kaushal Best Film (Critics): Ankhon Dekhi directed by Rajat Kapoor Best Actor Debut (Male): Fawad Khan for film Khoobsurat directed by Shashanka Ghosh Best Actor Debut (Female): Kriti Sanon for film Heropanti directed by Sabbir Khan Jnanpith award for the year 2014

Eminent Marathi litterateur Bhalachandra Nemade has been selected for the prestigious Jnanpith award for the year 2014. He will be the 50th recipient of the award. Mr Nemade occupies a unique place

in Marathi literature and his hugely celebrated works include novels Kosala and Hindu. He has also been conferred with Padma Shri and Sahitya Academi award.

Miss Universe 2015 Colombia’s Paulina Vega was crowned 63rd Miss Universe after beating out contenders from the United States, Ukraine, Jamaica and Netherland. Miss USA Nia Sanchez from Las Vegas was named a runner‐up, along with Miss Ukraine Diana Harkusha. Career Award An Indian‐origin scientist Gurpreet Singh has won prestigious $500,000 National Science Foundation CAREER award for his research on Scalable liquid

exfoliation processing of ultrathin two‐dimensional metal dichalcogenides nanosheets for energy storage devices.This CAREER award will help him to study large‐scale production of ultrathin sheets, a few atoms thick and several micrometres wide using transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs).At present no methods are available to produce thin TMDs in large quantities cost‐effectively. His research aims to make that possible. . Dr.Y. Nayudamma Memorial Award 2014 Two women scientists have been chosen as joint recipients of Dr.Y. Nayudamma Memorial Award 2014 for their significant contributions in the fields of missile technology and remote sensing. Recipients are Tessy Thomas‐ Director, Advanced Systems Laboratory of DRDO and Project Director (Mission) Agni V. Geeta Varadan‐ Director Advanced Data Processing Research Institute of ISRO. This is the first time in history of this award that two eminent women scientists are being awarded concurrently. NEWS IN BRIEF

• Poet Arundhathi Subramaniam won the inaugural Khushwant Singh Memorial Prize carrying a cash prize of Rs. 2 lakh for Poetry for her work When God is a Traveller

• Hindi novelist Mithileshwar was awarded with Shrilal Shukla Sahitya IFFCO Award 2014. He is the fourth recipient of this literary award

• Indian Journalist‐writer Hindol Sengupta’s book Recasting India: How Entrepreneurship is Revolutionizing the World’s Largest Democracy, has been shortlisted for the U.S.’ prestigious Hayek Prize, 2015

• Madhya Pradesh won the 10th National‐Award for excellent work in Mahatma‐Gandhi‐National‐Rural‐Employment‐Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA).

• Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU) has been selected for the prestigious Mahindra Samridhi India Agri Award 2015.

• Economist and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has won the newly instituted Charleston‐EFG John Maynard Keynes Prize.

• President Pranab Mukherjee presented Visitor’s Awards for Central Universities in the categories of Best University, Innovation and Research for the year 2015.

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Best University Award:University of Hyderabad for academic excellence & overall outstanding work. Innovation Award: Prof. Vijay K. Chaudhary and Dr. Amita Gupta of University of Delhi for their invention of TB Confirm, a rapid diagnostic test for Tuberculosis

BOOK AND AUTHOR

• Kiran Bedi Kaise Bani Top Cop a comic book has

been written by Kiran Bedi • A few Good men and the angry sea has been

written by Nitin Sathe on the tenth anniversary of Tsunami Tragedy.

• Pakistan's Ex‐Foreign Minister Khurshid M Kasuri penned 'Neither a Hawk nor a Dove'.The book is based upon the relations between India and Pakistan

• Book titled Editor Unplugged: Media, Magnates, Netas and Me written by Vinod Mehta

• Atal Bihari Vajpayee Srajan aur Mulyankan has been written by Pritam Singh.

• Rajesh Khanna : Kuch to Log Khenge has been written by Yasir Usman.

• Tipu Sultan : A Crussader for Change has been written by B Sheikh Ali.

• Vande Mataram has been written by Prabodh Kumar Mishra.

• Book The Indian Parliament – A Critical Appraisal has been written by Sudha Pai and Avinash Kumar.

• Spanish writer Javier Moro's Book 'The Red Sari' ‐ biography of Congress President Sonia Gandhi released in India.

PERSON IN NEWS • Sergio Mattarella was

sworn‐in as the President of Italy on 3 February 2015. He is the 12th President of Italy since the country became a Republic after World War II. He succeeded Giorgio Napolitano, 89, who stepped down from the post in January 2015 citing signs of fatigue.

• President Mansour Hadi of Yemen along with Prime Minister Khaled Bahah and his cabinet have resigned. Yemen government’s resignation comes after the President agreed to the demands of Shia Houthi rebels,

who had stormed his palace and private home in Sana’a (Capital of Yemen) earlier.

• Alexix Tsipras became the first prime minister in Greek history to be sworn in without the traditional oath on a Bible and blessing of basil and water from the Greek Archbishop.

• Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena has appointed Kanagasabapathy J Sripavan as Chief Justice.K Sripavan an ethnic‐Tamil took oath as the 44th Chief Justice and replaces Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake, who had resigned a day after she was reinstated.

• Prasanth Kumar was appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of MindShare APAC South Asia. He will succeed the current CEO Ravi Rao.

• United States (US) President Barack Obama has appointed Indian CEO Ajay Banga as member of the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations (ACTPN).ACTPN is the US president’s private‐sector advisory panel on international trade and helps him to coordinate trade related policies and resolve disagreements.

• India‐born Punit Renjen will become the next CEO of US‐based accounting giant Deloitte’s global operations.

He will assume his new role from 1 June.Renjen is the latest to join a long list of persons of Indian origin to become global CEOs. Others inlcude Indira Nooyi, Satya Nadela and Anshu Jain, who have made to the top posts at PepsiCo, Microsoft and

Deutsche Bank, respectively. • MO Garg was appointed as the

Director General of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR)

• Senior IPS officer Krishna Chaudhary took charge as the Director General (DG) of the border guarding force Indo‐Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).He succeeded Subhas Goswami.

• Union Government has appointed Subrahmanyam

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Jaishankar as the new Secretary of Ministry of External Affairs (i.e. Foreign Secretary). Before this appointment, he was India’s Ambassador to United States.

• Nandita Chatterjee was appointed as the Secretary in the Union Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA).Nandita Chatterjee succeeded Anita Agnihotri.

• Arvind Kumar Jain was appointed as the Director General (DG) of Police of Uttar Pradesh (UP). He will serve the post for just two months as he is due to demit the office. Jain succeeded Arun Kumar Gupta who retired as the DG Police of Uttar Pradesh. During the time of appointment, Jain was the Director General, Police Training Headquarters in Lucknow.

• Government gave additional charge of Managing Director and CEO of Punjab National Bank to Gauri Shankar, senior most executive director at the bank. The post of full time Managing Director and CEO has been vacant since November, when the then Chairman and Managing Director K R Kamath failed to get extension from the government. As per the government rules, the CMD and Directors are appointed in public sector entities for a period of five years or up to the age of 60, whichever is earlier.

• Balasubramaniam Venkataramani has been appointed as new MD & CEO of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX).B Venkataramani was Chief Business Officer of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

• M Ravindran has taken over as the Chairman of Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL).He has replaced K K Gupta, Director (Marketing) of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), who has relinquished the charge upon completion of his two‐year tenure.Presently M Ravindran is Director (Human Resources) of state‐owned gas utility GAIL (India) Limited.

• India’s largest mobile vendor, Micromax has appointed Shubhajit Sen as its chief marketing officer (CMO) to boost its marketing efforts as it looks to further improve its position in the surging smartphone market in the country.

• Defence Secretary RK Mathur is given additional charge of Department of Defence Research and Development (DDR&D).

• Eminent scientist Hanumanthu Purushotham took charge as Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of National Research Development Corporation (NRDC).

• Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh has sworn in as the 26th Governor of Himachal Pradesh. He succed Urmila Singh, who completed the full five year term as HP Governor on January 24.

• Vodafone India has appointed Naveen Chopra as Chief Operating Officer (COO).He will succeed Sunil Sood.

• Damyant Singh was appointed as the Brand Director of German sportswear brand Adidas Group, India.

• Ashok K Agarwal was appointed as General Manager of Southern Railway, Chennai with immediate effect. His appointment was approved by Union Ministry of Railways.

• Filmmaker Pahlaj Nihalani was appointed chairpersonof Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). Earlier, then Chairperson of CBFC Leela Samson had resigned after Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) cleared the controversial film Messenger of God featuring Dera Saccha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in lead role.Headquater of CBFC Mumbi.

OBITUARY

• Indian cartoonist R. K. Laxman, creator of the

innocuous character the Common Man, who held up a mirror to the absurdity and silliness of Indian politicians, has died of multiple‐organ failure. He was 94. His creations also include the sketches drawn for the television adaptation of Malgudi Days (written by his elder brother R K Narayan and directed by Shankar Nag). His autobiography is “The Tunnel of Time: An Autobiography”. He is recipient of Padma Bhushan (1971), Padma Vibhushan (2005) andRamon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature and Creative Communication Arts (1984)

• Hollywood actress, Luise Rainer died at her home at London. She

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died due to pneumonia at the age of 104. Rainer, a star of cinema’s golden era was the first actor to win consecutive Oscars. She won the Oscars for The Great Ziegfeld (1936) and The Good Earth (1937).

• Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz has passed away. He was 93‐year old patriarch.Abdullah’s brother Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud is his successor and new King of Saudi Arabia. Salman in turn, has named his half‐brother Muqrin as the new crown prince and his heir.

• Former Maharashtra Home Minister and Nationalist Congress Party leader Raosaheb Ramrao Patil died in Mumbai.He was elected to the Maharashtra legislative assembly for 6 consecutive times from Tasgaon constituency of Sangli district. He banned the dance bar in Maharashtra.

• Ashraf‐ul‐Haq, best known for his roles in ‘Fukrey’ and ‘Traffic Signal’, passed away at the age of 45. He was suffering from a bone marrow disfunction.

• Famous Greek singer Demis Roussos passed away in Athens, Greek. He was 68.

• Legendary social activist and freedom fighter Ghelubhai Naik passed away following a brief illness in Dang District, Gujarat.

• Eminent political scientist, Sociologist scholar and former Planning Commission member Rajni Kothari passed away in New Delhi.

• Germany’s former President Richard von Weizsaecker has passed away at the age of 94. His tenure also spanned the period of German reunification (Reunion of East and West Germany).

• Renowned chemist Carl Djerassi has passed away in San Francisco, United States (US).He was famously known as the father of the birth control pills for his contribution to the development of oral contraceptive birth pills.

• Famous Indian sculptor and artist Mrinalini Mukherjee passed away following a brief illness in New Delhi. She was best known for her sculptures, crafted using knotted hemp ropes and cast bronzes.

• Japanese industrial designer Kenji Ekuan died following the heart failure in Tokyo, Japan. Ekuan was famously

known for crafting a tabletop bottle for Kikkoman Corporation in 1961, winning international popularity both for the handy, flask‐shaped dispenser.

• French actor Louis Jourdan has passed away in Los Angeles, United States.He was best known for his role in the multi‐Oscar winning musical film Gigi of 1958

• Veteran Telugu novelist Kesava Reddy passed away on 13 February 2015 in Nizamabad district of Telangana following a prolonged illness. He was 68.

• Two‐time gold medal winning hockey Olympian Jaswant Singh Rajput passed away on 28th January 2015 following a prolonged illness.

• Kelvin David George Nagle, winner of British Open in 1960 died on 29 January 2015 in Sydney at the age of 94. He held a record of winning 61 tournaments on the Australasian PGA tour.

PLACES IN NEWS

India’s 1st solar fenced elephant sanctuary to come up near Bengaluru

International animal rights and conservation group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) announced that India’s 1st solar fenced elephant sanctuary will come up near

Bengaluru, co‐ordination with Bannerghatta Biological Park, Karnataka.Its main objective is to allow elephants in this park to move around freely within the secure area to curb man‐ animal conflicts in this area.It Designed by the PETA consultant and elephant expert Carol Buckley and basically includes solar electric fence and a state‐of‐the‐art emergency corral made of steel pipes. Periyar Tiger Reserve Periyar Tiger Reserve located in Kerala has won the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) biennial award for encouraging local public participation in managing the reserve. 23rd edition of New Delhi World Book Fair began The nine‐day event of 23rd edition of the New Delhi

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World Book Fair organised by National Book Trust (NBT), an apex body of the under the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development began at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.This year the theme of fair is Suryodaya: Emerging Voices from Northeast India. Singapore had been accorded the Guest of Honour Country status for this edition of fair while the Focus Country was South Korea.Over 1,500 exhibitors from all over India and 30 countries are participating in this year’s fair. First National Tribal Festival Vanaj concludes in New Delhi The week long National Tribal Festival, 'Vanaj 2015', which was being organised by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India, which aims to conserve and promote the distinctive cultures of the tribal by providing them a national platform concluded on 18 February 2015 in New Delhi. More than 900 folk and tribal artists from states like Assam, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal participated in it. The purpose of the festival was to uplift the quality of tribal lives of the country in order to conserve and promote their distinctive cultures by providing them national platform. Fourth River festival Fourth River festival was organized at Bandrabhan bank of Narmada River in Hoshangabad district in Madhya Pradesh.Three day festival was inaugurated by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.Theme of this year’s river festival is River, its catchment area, chemicals and crisis.In this year’s festival more than 100 participants discussed topics like effects of chemicals used in agriculture on forests, wild life and human beings. Success stories on natural farming was also be part of discussion. 29th Surajkund International Crafts Mela 29th Surajkund International Crafts Mela was organised in Faridabad district of Haryana.It was inaugurated by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar along with Chief Minister

of Chhattisgarh, Raman Singh.The theme state this year is Chhattisgarh.Lebanon is the Partner Nation of this year’s Mela. NEWS IN BRIEF

• Maharashtra Government has declared mineral rich Chandrapur district (in Vidarbha region) as dry district.Thus imposing ban on the sale, purchase, production and consumption of liquor in the district.

• Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh adopted Pachim Bekeli Gaon Panchyat under Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojna (SAGY). Pachim Bekeli Gaon Panchyat is located in Kamrup district of Assam.

• Dubai’s Maze Tower was listed in the Guinness World Record for being the world’s largest vertical maze. The maze tower was built by Al Rostamani Group of Dubai. The 55‐storey tall Maze Tower is located near the Sheikh Zayed Road in the Dubai Financial District.

• The 45th World Economic Forum Summit was held at Davos, Switzerland.

SPORTS

CRICKET • West Indies all‐rounder

Dwayne Bravo has announced his retirement from Test cricket. The 31‐year‐old has played 40 Tests but had not suited up for the West Indies since December 2010.Bravo said he had already informed the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) of his decision to retire from Tests but said he had made clear his desire to continue playing ODIs and Twenty20s. He bagged 86 wickets at an average of nearly 40.

• Australia won the tri‐nation One‐Day International (ODI) Series at Perth, Australia on 1 February 2015. It

won the series by defeating England by 112 runs in the final.Glenn Maxwell who scored 95 and took 4 for 46 helped

Australia to an emphatic win. The tri‐series tournament was played between Australia, India and England from 16 January 1 February 2015.

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• Australian cricketer Sean Abbott has won Bradman young cricketer of the year award 2015.While, Steve Smith was awarded the Allan Border Medal and being named both Test and one day player of the year.

• The BCCI has cleared suspended left‐arm spinner Pragyan Ojha's action and he is now eligible to play in Hyderabad's next Ranji Trophy encounter against Himachal Pradesh.

• Former Australia paceman Brett Lee has agreed to a short‐term deal to coach Ireland's bowlers in the buildup to the Cricket World Cup.

• The International Cricket Council (ICC) cleared the bowling action of Pakistani cricketer Saeed Ajmal. However, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Shahryar Khan said that according to the rules, Ajmal cannot be included in the ICC World Cup 2015 squad. Ajmal’s bowling action had been reported during the Galle Test in August 2014

• Virat Kohli became the first Indian cricketer to score a century against Pakistan in the ICC World Cup. He scored 107‐run off 126‐balls at the Adelaide Oval, Australia.

• The 8th Edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) auction was held in Bengaluru. Just like last year, Yuvraj Singh turned out to be the most expensive buy with the Delhi Daredevils acquiring him for a whopping Rs. 16 crores.

• International Cricket Council (ICC) in its board meeting in Dubai announced that India will host the Twenty20 World Cup in 2016. The Twenty20 World Cup will be held in India from 11 March 2016 to 3 April 2016.

TENNIS 2015 Australian Open

• Leander Peas and his Swiss teammate Martina Hingis have won 2015 Australian Open mixed doubles title.In the final they defeated Canadian‐French team of Daniel Nestor and Kristina Mladenovic, in straight sets, 6‐4 and 6‐3.This is their first Grand Slam of the season. With this win Leander Paes clinched his 15th Grand Slam title.

• Serena Williams won her 19th Grand Slam title, continued her unbeaten run in six Australian Open finals and extended her decade‐long domination of Maria Sharapova with a commanding 6‐3, 7‐6 (5) win.

• Novak Djokovic reasserted his rule over the hard courts of Melbourne

park,grinding down Andy Murray 7‐6(5),6‐7(4),6‐3,6‐0 to win his fifth Australian open .And its career 8th grand slam.

OTHERS GAME Syed Modi grand pix trophy 2015

• Saina Nehwal won women’s

single Syed Modi grand pix trophy 2015 by defeating World Champion Carolina Marin of Spain.

• Men's Singles Winner : Parupalli Kashyap by defeating Kidambi Srikanth.

All India Football Federations (AIFF) Indian men’s football team captain Sunil Chhetri and striker Bala Devi were awarded with the All India Football Federations (AIFF) 2014 Player of the Year trophy in men and women category, respectively. Others to be honoured with AIFF awards, include

• 2014 Player of the year (Men): Sunil Chhetri • 2014 Player of the year (Women): Bala Devi • 2014 Emerging Player of the Year: Sandesh

Jhingan • 2014 Best Referee: Santosh Kumar • 2014 Best Assistant Referee: Sappam Kennedy • Best Grassroots Programme: Western India

Football Association (WIFA) • Long Time Contribution to Indian Football: Oil and

Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Usain Bolt to retire after 2017 World Championships in London Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt announced that he will retire from athletics after the 2017 World Championships in London. Bolt holds the world records for the 100 meters, 9.58 seconds, the 200 meters, 19.19 seconds, and the 4x100 meters relay, 36.84 seconds, and talked of his drive to beat those times in 2015.His 2015 season culminates at the World Championships in Beijing from Aug. 22 ‐ Aug. 30 where he will attempt to add to his eight world golds and beat the 100 meters record he set in Berlin in 2009. Saloni Dalal became youngest medal winner in National Games 2015 Saloni Dalal, a school girl of Karnataka

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became the youngest medal winner in the 35th National Games in Kerala on 3 February 2015. The 12‐year‐old, Saloni won a Bronze medal in the 200 meter breast stroke swimming event. Kalyani Saxena of Gujarat and Rutuja Udeshi of Maharashtra won the gold and silver medals of the 200 meter breast stroke swimming event, respectively. National Games mascot Ammu in Limca Book of Records National Games mascot Ammu, the Great Hornbill, has

immortalised itself by finding a mention in the Limca Book of Records.The mascot found a place in the record books owing to a play, 'Kalikkunna Kuttikalkkayi Bharatham Kathirikkunnu' (India

Awaits Children Who Play) in which Ammu is featured. Scripted and directed by theatre artist Anil Karetee and enacted by a team of police officers led by Chandrakumar, the play was first enacted at a school in the city last September. NEWS IN BRIEF

• 2018 South Asian Games will be held in Guwahati in Assam

• France has became the first team in handball history to win five World Championships.

• Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri has won the Malaysian Open 2015 by defeating Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger.With this win Anirban Lahir secured his breakthrough European Tour title.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Micromax ousts Samsung as India's largest smartphone firm' Homegrown handset maker, Micromax took over Korean

electronics giant Samsung and became India’s biggest smartphone vendor and third largest in the world. In the recently concluded October‐December 2014 quarter, the Gurgaon‐

headquartered firm controlled 22 per cent market share in smartphones shipments in India,one of the world’s largest market for handsets,beating Samsung which had 20 per cent market share. The top four players in India by units shipped were Micromax, Samsung, Karbonn and Lava.

Digital Magazine App Flipboard launched Web Browser Version Popular news gathering app, Flipboard launched a Web Browser Version of its software for PC. Users can log in to the new web version to access the same curated content as on their mobile platforms.Flipboard's Web browser version was built over the past 18 months. It is designed to detect and automatically adjust to the different screen sizes of PCs. The largest canvas of PC screens allows Flipboard to rearrange the way the content appears on desktops so compelling pictures are showcased in bigger sizes and different layouts than on a smartphone, or even a tablet. World’s first humanoid robot staffed hotel set to open in Japan World’s first humanoid robot‐staffed hotel is set to open in Nagasaki, Japan in July 2015.The Henn‐na Hotel which means Strange Hotel will be employing Robots as its staff and other advanced technologies in order to significantly reduce operating costs.The hotel will come up with a Huis Ten Bosch theme park which is named after a town of Netherlands. SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched from Florida Unmanned SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has been successfully launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida on

its third attempt.It was carrying unmanned Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite. This satellite will be used by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

(NOAA) to monitor the Sun. It will particularly monitor changes in solar wind and provide warnings on hazardous outbursts from our star to warn forecasters. In turn it will help forecasters to predict changes which affect satellites, power grids and communication systems. NASA has launched Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP). National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has launched Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) three‐year mission satellite to observe soil moisture.It was launched from the Delta 2 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. It will help to monitor drought, predict floods,

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assist crop productivity, weather forecasting and linking water, Energy and Carbon Cycles. NEWS IN BRIEF

• Two beneficial algal species Ulva paschima Bast andCladophora goensis Bast were discovered off the west coast of India.They were discovered by Dr. Felix Bast and two research students working with him.

• Telecom regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) released a report on subscriber base. India telecom subscriber base reaches all‐time high at 970 million at the end of December 2014.

HEALTH

First major trials of Ebola vaccine begins in Liberia The first large‐scale human trials of two experimental vaccines against Ebola virus has begun in Liberia’s capital

Monrovia.With help of these vaccines, scientists are aiming to immunise more than 30,000 volunteers, including front‐line health workers in Liberia.

Treatment for HIV/AIDS infection will now be linked to Aadhaar Anti‐Retroviral Therapy (ART) Treatment for HIV/AIDS infection will now be linked to Aadhaar. Even those coming for HIV infection testing will have to produce their Aadhaar cards. This is to avoid duplication of patients going to several ART Centres for testing. The National Aids Control Organisation (NACO) has created a special software which will identify a patient who goes for testing at different centres and gets registered at all the centres. Lupin receives USFDA nod for diarrhoea drug vancomycin Mumbai‐based Lupin Limited has received final approval for its vancomycin hydrochloride capsules, 125 mg and 250 mg from the US Food and Drugs Administration (USFDA) to market a generic version of ANI Pharmaceuticals Inc’s Vancocin capsules. The company said that Lupin Pharmaceuticals Inc, Lupin’s US subsidiary, would commence marketing the product shortly.Vancomycin is an antibiotic useful for the treatment of a number of bacterial infections. Lupin's vancomycin capsules are the AB rated generic equivalent of ANI Pharmaceuticals Inc’s Vancocin capsules and are indicated for.

Drug‐resistant malaria detected at Myanmar‐India border Scientists have detected drug‐resistant malaria at the Myanmar‐India border. It was revealed in a Oxford University led study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal.Tests have shown that this drug‐resistant malaria is on the verge of entering India and now poses an enormous threat to global health. These detected drug‐resistant malaria parasite have ability to shrug off the effects of artemisinin (normally given as part of combination therapy to fight malaria) has been spreading since it emerged in South‐east Asia. Lupin launches asthma drug delivery device in US Mumbai‐based drug major Lupin signed an agreement with Poland‐based Celon Pharma to jointly develop a generic version of GlaxoSmithKline’s Advair Diskus, a drug used to treat asthma. Under the agreement, both the companies will jointly develop fluticasone/salmeterol dry powder inhaler (DPI) product which is a generic version of GlaxoSmithKline’s Advair Diskus. But Celon will supply the product to Lupin for its commercialisation in the US, Canada, Mexico, and other key markets.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Four new species of Fish discovered in Kerala Four new species of fish named Puntius nelsoni, Puntius nigronotus, Systomus chryseusand and Systomus rufus were discovered in Kerala. The findings were published in the “International Journal of Fauna and Biological Studies” in the last week of January 2015.The fishes were discovered by Mathews Plamoottil, a zoology professor at Baby John Memorial Government College in Kollam. These new fishes have been deposited in the museum of the Zoological Survey of India at Kolkata and Kozhikode NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope captured the rare triple‐moon conjunction

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope captured the rare occurrence of the three largest moons of Jupiter namely Europa, Callisto, and Io racing across the banded face of

the gas‐giant planet. This was a rare occurrence, as the event occurs once or twice in a decade.

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Earth's inner core has an inner core of its own: Study A new study revealed that the Earth's inner core has an inner core of its own, which has surprising properties that can reveal information about Earth.The findings of the study titled Equatorial anisotropy in the inner part of Earth’s inner core from autocorrelation of earthquake coda were published in the journal Nature Geoscience.The study was conducted by a research team led by Xiaodong Song at the University of Illinois and colleagues at Nanjing University in China with the novel application of earthquake‐reading technology Two tropical cyclones Marcia and Lam hit Australia Two tropical cyclones Marcia and Lam hit Australia on 20 February 2015. This is the first time that two cyclones have hit Australia at one time.Tropical cyclone Marcia is a category five storm and it made the landfall at central Queensland and left a trail of destruction over Yeppoon and Rockhampton.On the other hand Cyclone Lam is a category four storm which made landfall in the Northern Territory. NEWS IN BRIEF

• Union Ministry of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences launched an SMS‐based warning system which will provide alerts on cyclones.

• WWF (World Wildlife Fund) lunched Three mobile apps as part of project, Mobile Apps for Climate Change: A Citizen Science Programme for Schools in Metros.

• Forest and wild life department shut down the Sultanpur National Park at Haryana for one week. The park was shut down after 47 migratory birds were found dead in the park . The dead bird include Euresia coots(36),common Moorhen(9) and one each of spot billed duck and jungle babbler

• UN sent a team of international experts of UNDAC to Bangladesh to help clean up thousands of liters of fuel oil that spilled in Sundarbans region and also asked Dhaka to complete ban on movement on commercial vessels through sundarbans.

DEFENCE India successfully test‐fired canister‐based ICBM Agni‐V missile India successfully test‐fired indigenously developed canister‐based inter‐continental ballistic missile (ICBM) Agni‐V from Wheeler's Island off Odisha coast. Agni‐V is a surface‐to‐surface nuclear capable missile.Agni‐5

missile is a three stage solid propellant missile with strike range of over 5000 kilometer and capable of carrying nuclear warhead of over one tonne. It is about 17 meters long, 2 meters wide and has a launch weight of around 50 tonnes.M V K Prasad is the director of the project. HADR Exercise conducted by Indian Navy in the Lakshadweep Islands Indian Navy conducted a large scale Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise in the Lakshadweep Islands (Karavati, Aggatti, Kalpeni and Androth).The HADR exercise was designed to validate Indian Navy’s readiness and capability to handle major cyclone striking the Lakshdweep Islands and disrupting essential services, causing widespread destruction of property, loss of life and dislocation of personnel. The exercise saw participation of more than 20 Indian Naval Ships from the Western and Eastern Fleet along with various aircraft of the Indian Navy. The exercise was conducted in an area of about 8000 square miles in the Indian Ocean. Kalyani Group‐Rafael JV to develop defence products Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make in India pitch appears to have caught the attention of global aerospace

and defence companies, with the Pune‐based $2.5‐billion Kalyani Group entering into a joint venture (JV) with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. The JV aims to develop and

manufacture a wide range of missiles, remote weapon systems and advanced armour solutions. In line with the new investment norms in the sector, which stipulate the Indian partner have majority control, Kalyani Group will hold a 51 per cent stake in the JV, while the rest will be with Rafael.

NEWS IN BRIEF • Indian Coast Guard has inducted a high‐speed

patrolling ship Amogh into its fleet.Amogh will be stationed off Paradip coast in Odisha.It can travel at maximum speed of 63 km per hour.The ship has facilities like firing gun, rubber boats including one motor‐run, GPS system and upgraded radar system.

• The Naval Prototype 2 (NP2) of indigenously developed Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas undertook its successful maiden flight in Bengaluru, Karnataka.

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• India has successfully test‐fired its 290‐km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the Navy’s indigenously built destroyer INS Kolkata.The successful test fire of missile took place off the Goa coast after it met all its designed test parameters. Thus, showcasing INS Kolkata’s capability of firing the BrahMos missiles.

• Eighth India‐Nepal Combined Military Exercise Surya Kiran‐VIII started in Saljhandi (Nepal).

• Government approved Project‐17A worth 8 billion USD for building 7 advanced warships with stealth and other advanced features for avoiding detection. These frigates be built at government shipyards in Mumbai and Kolkata.

• Indian Navy concluded its Theatre Level Readiness and Operational Exercise (TROPEX)‐2015 aimed at validating Indian Navy’s Concept of Operations and the area of operations spanned across the Arabian Sea and Northern Indian Ocean.

• Tenth Joint Exercise of India ‐ Mongolia armies began in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh.

• Pakistan has conducted a successful flight test of the indigenously developed Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) Ra’ad.

RECENT SUMMIT IN NEWS

RIC Forum calls for early conclusion of Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism

Russia, India and China have called for an early conclusion of negotiations on the

Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the RIC Forum held in

Beijing. In this regard, a joint communiqué was issued by 3 nations in the 13th trilateral meeting of foreign ministers, under this forum .India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Chinese foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian foreign Minister Sergey Levrov had participated in the meeting. 15th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS 2015) The 15th edition of the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS 2015) held in february focused

on ‘Sustainable Development Goals and Dealing with Climate Change'. The DSDS, organized by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), was an international platform to facilitate the exchange of knowledge on all sustainable development‐related issues. The event regularly brings together Heads of State and Government, thought leaders, policy makers and representatives of industry and academia. The DSDS has been held annually since 2001, and over the past 14 years.The Summit has hosted 37 current and former Heads of State, as well as ministers from over 50 countries. First World Ocean Science Congress (WOSC) concluded in Kochi, Kerala.

The four‐day‐long event had started in Kochi on 5 February 2015.Themes of WOSC‐2015: Protect Oceans for Posterity and Blue Economy.It was organized

by Swadeshi Science Movement, Vijnana Bharati, Kerala Chapter and the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS).First edition of WOSC‐2015 witnessed to deliberate findings on sustainable means to utilise ocean resources without causing damage to the oceans and their marine life.It also witnessed presentation of 450 technical papers in 13 sessions by 86 Indian institutions and 14 foreign institutions. World Congress on Information Technology Hyderabad will host the World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT) in 2018. This will be the first WCIT to be held in India and the theme of the 2018 WCIT will be “Future of enterprises”. In 2014, the 19th WCIT was held in Guadalajara in Mexico. The theme was Building the Digital Age Together.WCIT 2016 is to be held in Brazil. NEWS IN BRIEF

• 18th National Conference on e‐Governance held in Gujarat with Theme “Digital Governance ‐ New Frontiers”.

• The Fifth General Assembly of IRENA (International Renewable Energy Association) held in Abu Dhabi (UAE).

• US will hosted an international Anti‐terror Summit in Washington in February 2015 to prevent terrorism.

• 24th African Union Summit: The 24th Summit of the African Union was held in January 2015 under the theme "Women's Empowerment Year and Africa Development for the concretisation of Agenda 2063"

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COMMITTEE AND ITS FUNCTION SIT to reinvestigate1984 anti Sikh riots. The government is likely to accepted the recommendation of a committee led by former Supreme Court judge G.P. Mathur to set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the 1984 anti‐Sikh riots. The riots, which followed assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984, claimed over 3,000 lives, of which 2,000 fell prey to violence in Delhi. National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) Union Government constituted a high‐level committee to allay apprehension of data sharing by various government agencies over National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID). NATGRID is a real time intelligence sharing set up. The committee will be headed by the Union Home Secretary. Other members of the committee will include the chiefs of all intelligence agencies and investigating units. NATGRID was proposed by former Union Home Minister P Chidambaram after the Mumbai 26/11 attack in 2008 and was approved by the Cabinet committee on Security during UPA regime. It aims to synergise 25 categories of database from agencies like, railways, banks, airlines, credit card companies, immigration and others, and make it available to the law enforcement officers. It was also aimed to identify, capture and prosecute terrorists and help pre‐empt terror plots. NEWS IN BRIEF • Shanta Kumar Committee on 21 January 2015

submitted its report on restructuring of Food Corporation of India (FCI) to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It has also recommended to reduced the beneficiary under National Fund Security Act from 67% to 40%.

• 20th Law Commission of India headed by A P Shah submitted 253rd report.

• Andhra Pradesh government constituted Fourth State Finance Commission under the Chairmanship of M L Kantha Rao.

• Government has accepted recommendations of M P Bezbaruah committee to look into concerns of people of the the North East states living in other parts of the country.

• Government has reconstituted Empowered Committee for setting up of Semiconductor Wafer Fabrication (FAB) manufacturing facilities in the country under NITI Aayog member V K Saraswat.

• Government reconstituted Pollution Control Board Working Group to simplify procedures to get consent certificates and categorisation of industries. The Working Group comprising of 11 members will be headed by Ayi Vaman N Acharya.

• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) constituted a Committee under RBI Deputy Governor R Gandhi, to re‐examine appropriate set of businesses and licensing terms for Urban Cooperative Banks (UCB). The eight‐member committee will be chaired by R Gandhi, the Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India.

• Government constituted a committee under former Union Home Secretary Anil Baijal to suggest a framework to assess Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities undertaken by companies.

• Government created three‐member Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Pramod Asthana for re‐investigation of 1984 anti‐Sikh riot cases.

• KS Radhakrishnan Committee on Road Safety submitted its report to supreme court and recommended ban of sale of alcohol on National and State highways to minimize road accidents along with other recommendations.

• Minis0try of Railways constituted an eight member Committee under Mohd. Jamshed to identify factors and issues affecting growth of traffic (Freight & Passenger) and suggest a plan of action for Traffic Optimization.

• Odisha Government has appointed Justice Madan Mohan Das as Chairman of committee for Inquiring of multi‐crore chit fund scam in Odisha

♦♦♦♦

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INTERNATIONAL AND NATIONAL INSTITUTION

International and National Institution International Organizations

Headquarters

UNO (United Nations Org) New York UNICEF New York UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade & Development)

Geneva

WHO (World Health Org) Geneva ILO (International Labour Org)

Geneva

WTO (World Meteorological Org)

Geneva

World Intellectual Property Org

Geneva

International Standards Org Geneva

IMF (International Monetary Fund)

Washington DC

World Bank Washington DC UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Org)

Paris

OECD (Org. for Economic Cooperation and Dev.)

Paris

UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Dev. Org)

Vienna

IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)

Vienna

Amnesty International London

Commonwealth of Nations London IMO (International Maritime Organization)

London

ICJ (International Court of Justice)

The Hague

OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)

Vienna

FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization)

Rome

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)

Brussels

Transparency International Berlin

SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Coop.)

Kathmandu

ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations)

Jakarta

APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Forum)

Singapore

Organization of Islamic Cooperation

Jeddah

National institution Head quaterReserve Bank of India (RBI) Mumbai

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)

Mumbai

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA)

Hyderabad

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)

New Delhi

Forward Markets Commission

Mumbai

Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA)

New Delhi

RECENT VISIT AND VISITOR

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Singapore President Tony Tan Keng Yam, who came on an official visite to New Delhi, commemorate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

• Prime Minister of Bhutan Lyonchhen Tshering Tobgay visited India with his spouse Aum Tashi Doma, Foreign Minister Rinzin Dorji and Economic Affairs Minister Norbu Wangchuk.

• U.S. President Barack Obama arrived on 25 January 2015 on his historic 3‐days visit to India.

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• Newly appointed Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka, Mangala Samaraweera visited India on his first foreign tour after assuming office.

• Bangladesh Senior Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Mozammel Haque Khan Visited India and signed agreements for stepping up Patrolling across India‐Bangladesh Borders.

• German Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks visited India for Indo‐German Environment Forum and Pledged to co‐operate with India in cleaning of Ganga river and financial assistance of 3 Million euros.

• United Nations Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change and former mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg visited India. Ministry of Urban Development partnered with Bloomberg Philanthropies for Smart Cities Initiative of Government.

DATE AND OBSERVATION

• 20 January‐ World Religion Day • 23 January‐Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s birth

Aniversery • 24 January‐Indian Tourism Day/International

Execise Day/ National Girl Child Day • 26 January‐Republic day of India • 28 January‐Lala Lajpat Ray’s Birth Aniversery • 30 January‐Martyr’s day, World Leporacy

Eradication Day • 2 February‐World Wetland Day (WWD) (The theme

for the world wetland day 2015 is Wetlands for our future

• 4 February‐ World Cancer Day (WCD) The tagline for the WCD 2015 was Not beyond Us/ National Day of Srilanka

• 5 February‐Kashmir Day (Organised by Pakistan) • 13 February‐Sarojini Naidu's Birth Anniversary • 14 February‐St. Valentine's Day

STATE NEWS

Kolkata Became India’s First Wi‐Fi Enabeled Metro City West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Launched 4th Generation (4G) free Wi‐fi service in Kolkata. Kolkata has become India’s first Wi‐

Fi‐enabled metro city and Private telecom operator, Reliance Jio is providing the 4G enabled service Wi‐fi in the city. Free Wi‐fi service will be rolled out in phased manner in all the wards under Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC)

as well as adjacent areas of Kolkata. The whole city is expected to come under Wi‐Fi coverage by mid‐April in 2015. Telangana government planning to organise Godavari Pushkaralu The upcoming Godavari Pushkarams in Telangana will be organised on the lines of the famous Kumbh Mela from July 14 to July 25.Godavari Pushkarams, which occur once in 12 years, was last held in the 2003. Government would spend Rs 425 crore to organise the event.In addition to the existing 27 bathing ghats, 69 new ghats will be constructed. The government will also construct bathrooms, toilets and changing rooms at each of the ghats. The ghats will be spread along the river Godavari starting from Nizamabad district till it enters Andhra Pradesh after passing through Khammam district. The facilities will be built in Nizamabad, Adilabad, Karimangar, Warangal and Khammam districts. Jackal Research & Translocation Project in UP Wildlife SOS in collaboration with Uttar Pradesh (UP) Forest Department and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is launching Jackal Research & Translocation Project in UP.Under this project, study and translocation of 30‐35 wild jackals from Akbar’s Tomb in Sikandra, Agra to safe natural habitat will be undertaken.It seeks to protect Blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra) population in Akbar’s tomb as well as jackals. Jharkhand Government Decided To Provide Tablets To All Girls Student Of KGBV Jharkhand Government decided to provide tablets to all girls student studying in class 9, 10, 11 and 12 in government Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV). The announcement was made during the two days Baal

Samagam festival held at Morhabadi Stadium in Ranchi, Jharkhand. It is a children festival. The Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya scheme was introduced by the Union Government in August

2004 for setting up to 1180 residential schools with boarding facilities at elementary level for girls belonging predominantly to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, minority communities and families below the poverty line in Educationally Backward Blocks.

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'Ghar Wapsi': Migrant Pandits Willing to Return to Valley Twenty‐four years after migrating from the Kashmir valley following militancy and violence, the Kashmir Pandits (Hindus) have expressed their willingness to return to their native place and asked the central govt. and state govt. to prepare a roadmap for their return. 38119 Kashmir Pandit families comprising more that 1.42 lakh person have migrated from the valley. West Bengal Government launched Micro Business Credit Card to boost MSME sector

West Bengal Chief Minister (CM) Mamata banerjee has launched the Micro Business Credit Card in association with the State Bank of India to boost the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector

in the state.The Micro Business Credit Card is the first of its kind in India. These Business credit cards will even help the farmers to start businesses. With the help of this card, the small and medium entrepreneurs will be able to avail the cash credit or loan up to 5 lakh rupees for their business activities, even without collateral security. A fund of 200 crore rupees has been created for this purpose by the state government and a simplified clearance process was chalked out.The government will start the clearance centres in Bardhaman, Durgapur, Asansol and other places to expedite the clearance process. Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System project launched in HP Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh launched the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS) project in Himachal Pradesh. The Rs 19 crore project will help in connecting 177 sites and 114 police stations in the state besides 13 district headquarters, 26 sub‐divisional police officers and three police ranges along‐with state crime records bureau.It would also connect CID crime branch, 14 control rooms, finger print bureau, forensic science laboratory and 16 CCTNS training centers in the state. Virbhadra expressed hope that the objectives of this project would be fully met and the public would be benefited immensely.

Chhattisgarh gets award for renewable power development Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented the award to Principal Secretary of Chhattisgarh's

Energy department, Aman Singh, for emerging as one of the best performing states in the renewable energy segment during the Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet (RE‐Invest). The state is generating 45 MW off grid solar power and 200 MW through rice husk.The solar power is being used in 600 primary health centre, 100 community health centre, 350 police stations, 1800 tribal hostels, 27 collectorates and 1,700 villages of the state. The state was adjudged for the award on the basis of criteria fixed by 13th Finance Commission. Netherlands and Thailand for development of floriculture in Sikkim State government of Sikkim in January 2015 has inked Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with governments of the Netherlands and Thailand for development of floriculture in the state. This deal will help the state to reach out to the international market. Features of the MoU

• Governments of the Netherland and Thailand will provide expertise and technologyto develop hybrid Sikkim’s Cymbidium and other orchids and also cut flowers

• They will help the state in marketing and transportation of flowers

NEWS IN BRIEF • Maharashtra government has announced that,

September 17 (on Vishwakarma Jayanti) will be observed as Industries Day in each district.

• Punjab government has launched e‐stamping project in the state. It was launched by state Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.This project seeks to computarise revenue departments of the state in order to remove malpractices and end leakage of government revenue. It also seeks to make revenue transactions safe and secure. At present, e‐stamping has been initiated as a pilot project in five districts of state. They are Mohali, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Bathinda.

• Taking objection to conduct of beauty contests in colleges and other educational institutions in Tamil Nadu, Madras High Court has directed the state government to issue a circular banning beauty contests in educational institutions.

• Chandigara lunch smart city app named smart chandigara to create awareness on consumer rights and responsibilities and provide all types of citizen‐

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centric and public utility services and information to the residents.

• Maharastra government decided to buy a house in London where B.R.Ambedkar stayed during his Higher Studies.

• Bihar government has announced 35% reservation for women in non‐gazetted government jobs in group C and D grade in the state service.

• State Government of Karnataka decided to amend the Karnataka Compulsory Primary Education Act (KCPEA), 2012. The KCPEA will be amended to impart primary education in Kannada language in the State.

• Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel launched the Taluka Planning Atlas (TPA) in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The TPA seeks to enable the local administration in taking effective decisions about the development in respective regions by providing precise information about the current status of various facilities and schemes.

RECENT GOVERNMENT DEVLOPEMENT

AND SCHEME

PaHaL Scheme for Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG Subsidy The Prime Minister recently reviewed, in a high level meeting, PaHaL (Pratyaksha Hastaantarit Laabh), the Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme for LPG Subsidy. • PaHaL, which covers more than 9.75 crore

LPG consumers, is perhaps the world’s largest cash transfer program as compared to similar programs in other countries, such as China, Mexico and Brazil.

PaHaL Scheme: • PaHaL aims to reduce diversion and eliminate duplicate

or bogus LPG connections. Under PaHaL, LPG cylinders are sold at market rates and entitled consumers get the subsidy directly into their bank accounts. This is done either through an Aadhaar linkage or a bank account linkage.

• The scheme has witnessed massive enrolment in a short span of time. The scheme will cover over 15.3 crore consumers across 676 districts of the country. Currently over 6.5 crore consumers i.e. 43% have already joined the scheme and will receive subsidy in their bank account.

• It has also put in place various mechanisms to simplify enrolment and enhance consumer convenience, and

thus, only 1.09 lakh complaints have been received so far, which constitute a mere 0.1% of the transactions. Over 85% of the complaints have been resolved.

• Preliminary data from 54 districts indicate that the growth of subsidised LPG has reduced significantly accompanied by a corresponding increase in sale of commercial LPG. This indicates that the scheme will enable substantive savings in subsidy which can then be deployed for other productive purposes, without reducing any entitlements of existing consumers.

• The success of the scheme is a result of an intensive Information Education Campaign comprising advertising through various means, direct reaching out to consumers, and dealer level campaigns.

• DBTL is designed to ensure that the benefit meant for the genuine domestic customer reaches them directly and is not diverted. By this process public money will be saved.

Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' (BBBP) The scheme was launched by PM Narendra Modi at Panipath in Hariyana and will focus on a multi‐sectoral approach to tackle the problem of the vanishing girl child. The Rs 100‐crore scheme is expected to be monitored by the Maneka Gandhi headed ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) in coordination with the ministries of Health and HRD. Target of scheme A toilet in every girls' school in 100 vulnerable districts. An innovation fund at state‐level to encourage best practices in improving child sex ratio (CSR) and gender inequities. District‐level awards to schools strengthening girl child education. Sukanya Samridhi Yojana

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a small deposit scheme Sukanya Samridhi Yojana for girl child under the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) campaign.The

scheme will ensure equitable share to a girl child in resources and savings of a family in which she is generally discriminated against a male child.Sukanya Samridhi Yojana will enable parents to open bank accounts of girls who are under 10 years of age.

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About the Sukanya Samridhi Account • Sukanya Samridhi Account will fetch an interest

rate of 9.1 percent and provide income tax rebate. • Sukanya Samridhi Account can be opened at any

time from the birth of a girl child till she attains the age of 10 years with a minimum deposit of 1000 rupees.

• A maximum of 1.5 lakh rupees can be deposited during the financial year. The account can be opened in any post office or authorised branches of commercial banks.

• The account will remain operative for 21 years from the date of opening of the account or marriage of the girl child after attaining 18 years of age.

• To meet the requirement of higher education expenses, partial withdrawal of 50 percent of the balance amount will be allowed after the girl child has attended 18 years of age.

Prakash Path PM Modi launched “Prakash Path” LED lighting system in Delhi to save energy. Describing the LED (light emitting diode) bulb as a 'Prakash Path' – 'way to light', Modi said that it is much more economical to conserve power than to produce power.He launched this scheme under the domestic efficient lighting programme in Delhi and a National Programme for LED‐based Home and street lighting. Management Information System (MIS) Union Government has launched Management Information System (MIS) to check progress and implementation of Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana (DAY) scheme in different states.MIS aims to check real time progress on skill development and enhancing livelihood opportunities for urban poor under DAY scheme.It was launched by Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) Minister M Venkaiah Naidu. Raahgiri Day For The Persons With Disabilities A first of its kind event “Raahgiri day for the persons with disabilities” was organized as a unique initiative by the Department of Empowerment of persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India recently.

• The concept is inspired by “Ciclovia” held weekly in Bagota, Columbia and now popular all over the world known by different names viz. Open Streets, Summer Streets, etc.

• Raahgiri Day provides citizens with the opportunity to reclaim their streets, connect with their community, celebrate their city and therefore reclaim their lives.

• This event was organised keeping in mind the spirit of Prime‐ Minister’s initiative “Sabka saath Sabka vikas” which includes the persons with disabilities.

Union Ministry for Health & Family Welfare launched National Deworming Initiative The Union Ministry for Health & Family Welfare launched the National Deworming initiative on the eve of the National Deworming Day at Jaipur.The initiative aimed at protecting more than 24 crore children in the ages of 1‐19 years from intestinal worms. This initiative aims to target intestinal parasitic worms among the children to achieve status of being Worm‐free.According to WHO estimates, nearly 24 crore children in India in the age group of 1‐14 years are at risk of intestinal parasitic worm infestation. Scheme for Grant of Government Pension to Journalists Puducherry government has initiated steps to bring into effect a scheme evolved in 2003 to pay monthly pension to media persons.The scheme envisages payment of monthly pension of Rs 6000 to a media person who had completed 20 years of continued service in a newspaper, periodical, news agency or in electronic media, a government notification said.The beneficiary should be aged 58 years and above at the time of presenting the application. Web based tool to track atrocities targeted against Dalits To monitor the atrocities targeted towards Dalits and Adivasis in the country and to ensure speedy justice to them, a web based tool, Atrocity Tracking and Monitoring (ATM) system has been launched by the National Dalit Movement for Justice (NDMJ). Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are two of the most vulnerable communities in India in terms of discrimination and violence. National Heritage Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY)

The Union Ministry of Urban Development launched the National Heritage Development

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and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) that seeks to preserve and rejuvenate the rich cultural heritage of the country.HRIDAY seeks to promote an integrated, inclusive and sustainable development of heritage sites, focusing on maintenance of monuments and on advancement of the entire ecosystem.In the initial phase of HRIDAY, 12 heritage cities have been identified which will be rejuvenated and developed. Union Government will provide 500 crore rupees to these 12 cities. 12 cities ‐ Amritsar, Varanasi, Gaya, Puri, Ajmer, Mathura, Dwarka, Badami, Velankanni, Kanchipuram, Warangal (Telangana) and Amaravati (Andhra Pradesh).

♦♦♦♦

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200 MCQ ON CURRENT AFFAIRS 1. Canister version of which missile was successfully

tested by DRDO recently (a) Prithvi (b) Akash (c) Agni‐IV (d) Agni‐V (e) Dhanush

2. NSSO survey has reported what percentage of the food grains in PDS never reach the beneficiaries (a) 52.5% (b) 49.7% (c) 46.7% (d) 38.3% (e) 40.3%

3. The govt. appointed committee probing into which of the following communal riot has recommended for creating a SIT (a) Mumbai (b) Hyderabad (c) Delhi (d) Assam (e) None of these

4. Anti‐austerity protest against govt. policy has been launched in which country (a) Italy (b) Germany (c) Spain (d) France (e) None of these

5. PM Modi will visit China in which month (a) February (b) March (c) April (d) May (e) July

6. Indo‐Bangladesh Joint Border Conference is held in February in (a) Assam (b) Tripura (c) West Bengal (d) Meghalaya (e) None of these

7. IOB has decided to issue bond to raise (a) Rs. 1000 cr. (b) Rs. 5000 cr. (c) Rs. 10,000 cr. (d) Rs. 20,000 cr. (e) Rs. 50,000 cr.

8. Which of the following has plan to apply for payment bank (a) Idea (b) Airtel (c) Aircel (d) Reliance (e) All of these

9. Richard Van Weizaecker who died recently was the former President of which country (a) France (b) Italy (c) USA (d) Germany (e) None of these

10. USA regulator has set term to clear Sun Pharma’s $ 4 billion acquisition of (a) Cipla (b) Ranbaxy (c) Reddy’s Cab (d) Lupin (e) None of these

11. The Central govt. removed whom as Union Home Secretary for influencing the CBI. (a) L.C. Goyal (b) R. Mehershi (c) Anil Goswamy (d) S.C. Dubey (e) None of these

12. The three day Delhi Sustainable Development Summit was organised by (a) TERI (b) MEF (c) ISRO (d) DRDO (e) None of these

13. Which Commission has recommended to set up a SIT to investigate the 1984 Anti Sikh riots again (a) G.P. Sharma (b) G.P. Mathur (c) G.P. Yadav (d) G.P. Shah (e) None of these

14. Anti‐Retroviral Therapy (ART) is used for which disease (a) Dengue (b) Ebola (c) AIDS (d) Cancer (e) None of these

15. Which state govt. has declared to provide free education till PG level for SC, ST and Girl Students? (a) UP (b) Bihar (c) Odisha (d) MP (e) Jharkhand

16. Which High Court has issued direction to stop Beauty Contest in educational institutions? (a) Delhi (b) Kolkata (c) Madras (d) Mumbai (e) None of these

17. The remark of religious intolerance in India by the President of which country has been sharply reacted by India. (a) China (b) Pakistan (c) Russia (d) USA (e) None of these

18. Which multi‐lateral association has decided to establish a Green Fund for development of Green project & technology (a) ASEAN (b) SAARC (c) EU (d) BRICS (e) None of these

19. “Visit India year” was launched recently in which country (a) USA (b) Russia (c) France (d) China (e) Cambodia

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20. The UN Court ICJ has rejected rival clams if genocide between Croatia and (a) Russia (b) Serbia (c) Montenegro (d) Turkey (e) None of these

21. USA President has proposed over $ 1 billion in civilian and military aid to which country (a) Sri Lanka (b) Afghanistan (c) Pakistan (d) India (e) Nepal

22. Pro‐democracy protest resumed again in which of the following (a) Nepal (b) Hong Kong (c) Cyprus (d) Maldives (e) Bhutan

23. A top level diplomatic initiative by France and Germany started on which issue (a) Ukraine (b) Sri Lanka (c) Nepal (d) Sudan (e) Congo

24. “Wetlands for our future” is the theme of the wetland day 2015 observed on (a) 1st February (b) 2nd February (c) 3rd February (d) 4th February (e) 5th February

25. Which country is at the top of the destination in the world for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) (a) USA (b) India (c) China (d) Hong Kong (e) Brazil

26. “Not Beyond Us” is the tagline of the 2015 World Cancer Day observed on (a) 2nd February (b) 3rd February (c) 4th February (d) 5th February (e) 6th February

27. RBI has reduced SLR by what basic points (a) 100 (b) 50 (c) 25 (d) 150 (e) None of these

28. Reduction in SLR will release what amount as liquid with commercial banks (a) Rs. 50 lakh cr. (b) Rs. 45 lakh cr. (c) Rs. 45,000 cr. (d) Rs. 50,000 cr. (e) None of these

29. RBI has allowed individuals to buy assets overseas upto what amount in a year (a) Rs. 5 cr. (b) Rs. 4.5 cr. (c) Rs. 2.5 cr. (d) Rs. 1.5 cr. (e) Rs. 1 cr.

30. What is India position from the bottom of the Global Intellectual Property Centre (GIPC) ranking (a) 2nd (b) 3rd (c) 4th (d) 5th (e) 6th

31. Roongta Committee is related to reform in (a) Telecom (b) Railway (c) Mining (d) Public Sector (e) None of these

32. HDFC bank has raised what amount through ADR and QIP offerings recently (a) Rs. 10880 cr. (b) Rs. 9880 cr. (c) Rs. 8880 cr. (d) Rs. 7880 cr. (e) None of these

33. As per NSSO report what percentage of grains released through the PDS did not reach the intended beneficiaries (a) 57.3% (b) 47.6% (c) 46.7% (d) 43.5% (e) 35.3%

34. Govt. has decided to infuse what amount in 9 Public Sector Banks (a) Rs. 6990 cr. (b) Rs. 6490 cr. (c) Rs. 5940 cr. (d) Rs. 5690 cr. (e) Rs. 5360 cr.

35. Which Public Sector Banks will get the maximum capital infusing from the govt as declared recently (a) PNB (b) BOB (c) UCO Bank (d) SBI (e) UBI

36. Sergio Mattarella was sworn in as the President of which country (a) France (b) Germany (c) Italy (d) China (e) Indonesia

37. Indian American Ajay Banga has been appointed by US President Obama as a member in the Advisory Committee on (a) Trade (b) Health (c) Public Sector (d) Technology (e) None of these

38. Eminent writer Bhalachandra Nemade who won the 50th Jnanpith Award is a famous writer in (a) Urdu (b) Telgu (c) Tamil (d) Marathi (e) Assame

39. Which country become the 1st in world to legalise 3 parent child (a) USA (b) UK (c) Ireland (d) France (e) Italy

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40. DRDO recently tested the canister version of which missile (a) Agni‐IV (b) Agni‐V (c) Astra (d) Saurya (e) None of these

41. Which country has tested its own Air Launched Cruise Missile Ra’ad recently? (a) North Korea (b) Taiwan (c) Iran (d) Pakistan (e) India

42. US based Rockefeller Foundation has selected how many Indian cities in the Resilent city project (a) 3 (b) 4 (c) 5 (d) 16 (e) 8

43. Yengluck Shinawatra who has been banned from travelling abroad as the former PM of (a) Ireland (b) Ukraine (c) Thailand (d) Malaysia (e) Indonesia

44. CSO has reported that India is set to grow at what rate of GDP growth during the current year (a) 6.7% (b) 7.6% (c) 7.4% (d) 6.8% (e) 5.6%

45. Which international organisation has asked India to ease administrative and regulatory burden for economic growth (a) APEL (b) OECD (c) WTO (d) IMF (e) IBRD

46. Naveen Chopra has been appointed as Indian head of which Telecom company (a) Idea Cellular (b) Vodafone (c) Tata Teleservices (d) Reliance Telecom (e) None of these

47. Which country has postponed presidential election on security ground as Boko Haram militant conflict intensified there (a) Angola (b) Sudan (c) Nigeria (d) Congo (e) Ethiopia

48. The total number of telephone subscriber has touched an all time high of what level in India (a) 78 cr. (b) 79 cr. (c) 97 cr. (d) 89 cr. (e) 68 cr.

49. At the 1st governing council meeting of the NITI Ayog PM constituted how many panels

(a) 5 (b) 7 (c) 3 (d) 9 (e) 6

50. Tony Ton Keng Yom who come on an official visit to India is the President of (a) Ireland (b) Singapore (c) Hong Kong (d) France (e) Netherland

51. Adani Enterprises Ltd. will develop 10000 mw Solar Park in which state (a) Gujarat (b) Rajasthan (c) MP (d) Odisha (e) Karnataka

52. The famous Godavari Pushkarams will be held in which state (a) Karnataka (b) Telengana (c) AP (d) MP (e) Rajasthan

53. Global IT major Cisco has taken up which Indian city to develop it to a smart city (a) Indore (b) Visakhapatnam (c) Jaisalmar (d) Bhubaneswar (e) Raipur

54. UN has proposed a resolution to impose sanction on individuals and companies trading oil with (a) Islamic states militants (b) Boko Haram militants (c) Taliban militants (d) Al‐Quida militants (e) None of these

55. Russia, India, China forum meeting was held recently at (a) New Delhi (b) Mumbai (c) Beijing (d) Kremlin (e) Moscow

56. Who headed the 14th Finance Commissioner (a) Y.V. Reddy (b) Sam Petroda (c) Y.K. Alag (d) S.N. Gupta (e) None of these

57. Nicol David who set a new record by topping the World Squash ranking for 106th month belong to (a) Singapore (b) Malaysia (c) India (d) Japan (e) South Korea

58. Which state won the Excellence Award for implementing MGNREGS (a) Maharashtra (b) Bihar (c) MP (d) Gujarat (e) Goa

59. Who presided over the 1st meeting of the governing council of the NITI Ayog (a) President (b) PM

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(c) Home Minister (d) Finance Minister (e) Vice Chairman

60. Who get the best actor award at the 60th Film Fair Award (a) Shahid Kapoor (b) Amir Khan (c) Salman Khan (d) Amitab Bachchan (e) None of these

61. How many centrally sponsored schemes are being in operation at present which will be reviewed by the NITi Ayog? (a) 66 (b) 76 (c) 86 (d) 96 (e) 106

62. As per TRAI report the total number of Telephone subscriber in India reached an all time high of (a) 87 cr. (b) 97 cr. (c) 67 cr. (d) 77 cr. (e) 57 cr.

63. Which of the following Indian cities have been included in to Rockfeller Foundation of USA’s Resilent city prog. (a) Chennai (b) Surat (c) Bengaluru (d) All of these (e) None of these

64. Which foreign bank account having Indian Black Money abroad has been exposed recently (a) City Bank (b) American Express (c) HSBC (d) Doha Bank (e) None of these

65. National Dewarming Day was observed by the Union Health Ministry from (a) Jaipur (b) Udaipur (c) Hissar (d) Panipath (e) BBSR

66. Adani Enterprise has signed MOU to establish India’s largest solar park with 10000 mw capacity in (a) UP (b) Rajasthan (c) Gujarat (d) MP (e) Bihar

67. The Ocean Science Congress was organised recently at (a) Goa (b) Kochi (c) Vizag (d) Kandla (e) Paradeep

68. A 4 way talk started involving Germany and France etc. on (a) Ukraine (b) Serbia (c) Palestine (d) Sudan (e) None of these

69. Tony Abhott who survived a confidence vote recently is the PM of (a) UK (b) Canada (c) Australia (d) Japan

(e) Mangolia 70. At the Delhi Assembly election AAP won what

percentage of vote (a) 58 (b) 68 (c) 54 (d) 64 (e) 74

71. Name the centrally launched prog. to immunise children in India (a) Project Surakhya (b) Project Sahaya (c) Project Indradhanus (d) Project Rahat (e) None of these

72. India is looking to attract investment of $ 200 billion to increase its installed renewable energy capacity to 100,000 mw from 3000 mw by which year (a) 2015 (b) 2017 (c) 2020 (d) 2022 (e) 2015

73. Anwar Ibrahim in news was the former President of which country in news recently (a) Indonesia (b) Malaysia (c) Singapore (d) Afghanistan (e) Japan

74. Who won the 1st Keyns Prize 2015 (a) Sukamar Sen (b) Raghuram Rajan (c) Y.V Reddy (d) Amartya Sen (e) A. Panagaria

75. Following US footstep Britain & France decided to close their diplomatic office in which country (a) Yemen (b) Nigeria (c) Sri Lanka (d) Israel (e) Sudan

76. Which Indian neighbouring country has decided to issue visa on arrival to boost business in the country recently (a) Pakistan (b) Afghanistan (c) Sri Lanka (d) Bangladesh (e) None of these

77. Which Bank has launched India’s 1st digital bank named “Pocket” on a mobile phone (a) HDFC (b) Axis (c) ICICI (d) SBI (e) PNB

78. NASSCOM has projected an IT export target $ 300 billion by which year (a) 2015 (b) 2017 (c) 2020 (d) 2022 (e) 2025

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79. Which court has ruled receltly that Right to Religion in the Fundamental Right is not above public morality (a) Kolkata High Court (b) Allahabad High Court (c) Patna High Court (d) Odisha High Court (e) Supreme Court

80. Kaise Bani Top Cop is a book on (a) KPS Gmi (b) Prakash Mishra (c) Kiran Bedi (d) Ajit Dival (e) None of these

81. Nitish Kumar and Jitan Ram Manji in Bihar belong to which political party (a) NDA (b) BJP (c) JD(U) (d) JD(S) (e) BSP

82. The International Crisis Group has recently expressed its report on which country where conflict has reached a point of no return (a) Afghanistan (b) Pakistan (c) Bangladesh (d) Nepal (e) None of these

83. CSO has reported that Indian economy is set to grow at what percentage (a) 5.6% (b) 6.4% (c) 6.8% (d) 7.4% (e) 7.6%

84. Tony Ton Keng Yom who visited India recently is the PM of (a) Thailand (b) Hong Kong (c) Singapore (d) Malaysia (e) Indonesia

85. Which international grouping has called India to relax regulatory and administrative burden for economic growth (a) APEC (b) OPEC (c) OECD (d) IMF (e) IBRD

86. Union govt. has decided to launched a Nation Rural Drinking Water and Sanitation Awareness week in (a) February (b) March (c) April (d) May (e) June

87. Union govt. has constituted an SIT to reinvestigate the 1984 anti Sikh riot with how many member (a) 5 (b) 2 (c) 3 (d) 4 (e) 6

88. Modi Temple was constituted by his supporter which was demolished due to Modi’s reaction in (a) Rajkot (b) Bhadadora

(c) Surat (d) Ahmadabad (e) None of these

89. INS Viraat the Indian Aircraft carrier will be decommissioned in which year (a) 2015 (b) 2016 (c) 2017 (d) 2018 (e) 2020

90. Name Kiran Bedi’s NGO under scanner for receiving foreign fund (a) Parivartan Foundation (b) Ajeevak Foundation (c) Navajyoti Foundation (d) Swadhar Foundation (e) None of these

91. Japan’s PM Shinzo Abe plans to revise Japanese constitution in which year (a) 2016 (b) 2017 (c) 2018 (d) 2019 (e) 2020

92. International Finance Corporation has agreed to finance what amount to Aditya Birla Group for its Carbon Black project in China (a) $ 200 million (b) $ 300 million (c) $ 400 million (d) $ 500 million (e) $ 300 billion

93. Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan attended the TAPI Gas pipe line project meeting at (a) New Delhi (b) Islamabad (c) Karachi (d) Minsk (e) Tehran

94. Pauline Vega who won the Miss Universe title 2015 belong to (a) Cuba (b) Venezuela (c) Colombia (d) South Africa (e) Ecuador

95. France, Germany, Russia & Ukraine leader agreed for a ceasefire on Ukraine from (a) 10th February (b) 15th February (c) 15th March (d) 20th February (e) 20th March

96. The Union govt. has came with new guidelines for the states to control which of the following recently (a) Ebola (b) H1N1 (c) H5N1 (d) Dengue (e) AIDS

97. The Union govt. has shortlisted how many application for coal block offer under the new auction route (a) 145 (b) 138 (c) 134 (d) 124 (e) 128

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98. IMF & Ukraine has reached a financial deal of what amount for development (a) $ 15.3 billion (b) $ 12.7 billion (c) $ 17.5 billion (d) $ 15.7 billion (e) None of these

99. Jacob J. Lew who is on a visit to India is America’s Secretary of (a) Defence (b) Home (c) External Affairs (d) Treasury (e) Trade

100. Asia Pacific Mediation Conference was organised recently at (a) Mumbai (b) London (c) Perth (d) New Delhi (e) Washington

101. Moshe Yo’alon who will come on a visit to India for the first time is the defence minister of (a) USA (b) England (c) France (d) Israel (e) Japan

102. Power Grid Corporation Ltd. has raised what amount by bond sale recently (a) Rs. 1500 cr. (b) Rs. 500 cr. (c) Rs. 1000 cr. (d) Rs. 2500 cr. (e) Rs. 5000 cr.

103. Reliance Power has signed MOU with which state to establish 6000 mw Solar Power Plant. (a) MP (b) Gujarat (c) Odisha (d) Rajasthan (e) Bihar

104. Tata Steel has acquired 3 service centres in (a) North America (b) Australia (c) Scandinavia (d) Africa (e) Europe

105. Indian Trade deficit has declined to what amount on December 2014. (a) $ 8.32 billion (b) $ 7.63 billion (c) $ 11.86 billion (d) $ 5.9 billion (e) None of these

106. AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal become _______ PM of Delhi (a) 7th (b) 8th (c) 9th (d) 10th (e) 12th

107. Naval version of which missile was successfully tested recently by DRDO from INS Kolkata (a) BrahMos (b) Lakshya (c) Agni (d) Trishul (e) Prithvi

108. GMR Energy get the Talabira‐1 Coal Block through the e‐auction for its project in

(a) Odisha (b) Gujarat (c) Chhatisgarh (d) Jharkhand (e) None of these

109. The “Grand Challenge Programmes” by India supported by the UNO is related to (a) Health (b) Education (c) Transportation (d) IT (e) Sports

110. Which unit of the HSBC Bank India has been alleged to help Black Money deposit? (a) Paris (b) Washington (c) London (d) Geneva (e) Davas

111. Union Environment and Forest Ministry is proposing to launches a new project for the (a) Tiger (b) Elephant (c) Dolphin (d) Lion (e) None of these

112. As per report which Islamist militant group pose more threat than the IS militants (a) Hizb‐ur‐Tahrir (b) Jaishi‐e‐Muhmad (c) Taliban (d) JuD (e) Al‐Quida

113. Central govt is proposing to amend the AP Reorganisation Act passed by Indian Parliament in (a) 2011 (b) 2012 (c) 2013 (d) 2014 (e) 2015

114. The President of which country is proposing a law to ban foreigners from acquiring property in that country (a) Kenya (b) South Africa (c) Uganda (d) Somalia (e) None of these

115. The President of which African country has appealed for more USA help to fight the Boko Haram militants. (a) Congo (b) Nigeria (c) Somalia (d) Ethiopia (e) None of these

116. The Kokang rebels are fighting with the military of which country (a) Pakistan (b) Bangladesh (c) China (d) Myanmar (e) Maldives

117. As per OECD modalities India will be able to get automatic information on Black Money abroad by which year (a) 2015 (b) 2016 (c) 2017 (d) 2018 (e) 2020

118. Which of the following has prepared the Automatic Information Exchange Framework?

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(a) IMF (b) WTO (c) OECD (d) IBRD (e) UNO

119. Indian origin scientist Gurpeet Singh bagged $ 500000 research award for developing (a) AIDS Vaccine (b) Ebola Vaccine (c) Lightest material (d) Ultrathin metal sheet (e) None of these

120. Maithripal Sirisena who is on an official visit to India is the president of (a) Myanmar (b) Nepal (c) Sri Lanka (d) Afghanistan (e) None of these

121. Union Power Minister Piyush Goel projected India to be a power surplus country by (a) 2020 (b) 2017 (c) 2019 (d) 2022 (e) 2030

122. By the 1st week of February 2015 Indian Forex reserve increased to (a) $ 300 billion (b) $ 310 billion (c) $ 320 billion (d) $ 330 billion (e) $ 340 billion

123. Reinvest 2015 is the 1st global summit on (a) Investment (b) Renewable energy (c) IT (d) Pharmaceuticals (e) None of these

124. Reinvest 2015 was organised at (a) Hyderabad (b) Gandhinagar (c) Mumbai (d) New Delhi (e) Patna

125. India won over Pakistan in the 1st match in the World Cup Cricket at (a) Adelaide (b) Melborn (c) Sydney (d) Auckland Domain (e) Wellington

126. Delhi police has busted a corporate espionage ring involving in leaking classified sensitive documents of which Union ministry first (a) Telecom (b) Petroleum & Natural Gas (c) Finance (d) Defence (e) None of these

127. Indian Army recently test fired which nuclear power surface‐to‐surface ballistic missile (a) Agni‐II (b) Prithvi‐II (c) Akash (d) BrahMos (e) Shaurya

128. Cabinet Committee on security headed by PM Modi has cleared the indigenous production of how many nuclear power submarines (a) 10 (b) 12 (c) 8 (d) 6 (e) 5

129. Which court has ruled that barring a person from contesting election the moment criminal charges are framed against him is against the very spirit of Indian Constitution? (a) Delhi High Court (b) Patna High Court (c) Bombay High Court (d) Allahabad High Court (e) Supreme Court

130. The famous International Nalanda University in India is under which union ministry (a) Home (b) HRD (c) External Affairs (d) Finance (e) None of these

131. Who is the chancellor of Nalanda University? (a) Pranab Mukherjee (b) Narendra Modi (c) Smruti J. Irani (d) Amartya Sen (e) Arvind Panagaria

132. At the Re‐invest 2015 Summit held recently in India govt. declared its target to create 100 gw of solar power by (a) 2015 (b) 2017 (c) 2020 (d) 2022 (e) 2025

133. The govt. of India target to collect what amount from the ongoing coal block auction. (a) Rs. 2 lakh cr. (b) Rs. 3 lakh cr. (c) Rs. 1 lakh cr. (d) Rs. 5 lakh cr. (e) Rs. 10 lakh cr.

134. Bihar govt. has announced what percentage of reservation for women in non‐gazetted job. (a) 25% (b) 30% (c) 35% (d) 40% (e) 50%

135. Recently the Indian govt. has launched Project‐17A related to

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(a) Space (b) Nuclear Power (c) Sports (d) Defence (e) IT

136. To bring transparency and ease of doing business in India the govt. has launched a single window G2B portal e‐Biz for how many central govt. services (a) 21 (b) 11 (c) 15 (d) 23 (e) 31

137. How many states have been identified in the 1st phase for implementing the e‐Biz programme (a) 29 (b) 25 (c) 17 (d) 15 (e) 10

138. Moshe Ya’aln who visited India declared all help to India for the success of Modi’s Make in India programme is Israel’s minister for (a) Industry (b) Commerce (c) Defence (d) Foreign Affairs (e) None of these

139. CM of which Indian state visited Bangladesh to participate in the International Mother Language Day function there (a) Tripura (b) Assam (c) West Bengal (d) Odisha (f) None of these

140. The former PM of which country was charged by the court in a bungled rice subsidy scheme during her tenure (a) Bangladesh (b) Pakistan (c) Thailand (d) Indonesia (e) Myanmar

141. Which country has called for UN backed intervention in Libya against the Islamic states militants (a) Syria (b) Egypt (c) Lebanon (d) Iraq (e) Kuwait

142. The brand value of India’s largest software company TCS increased by what amount in 2015 (a) $ 5.7 billion (b) $ 7.8 billion (c) $ 8.7 billion (d) $ 9.8 billion (e) $ 8.9 billion

143. IRCON has expressed its intention to bid for highway construction project in which country (a) Myanmar (b) Sri Lanka (c) Bangladesh (d) Nepal (e) Bhutan

144. Hero group promoter Hero Motorcrop has divested 4% share for what amount to fund diversification (a) Rs. 8000 cr. (b) Rs. 3800 cr. (c) Rs. 4800 cr. (d) Rs. 2800 cr.

(e) Rs. 1800 cr. 145. Union govt. has notified the rules for Indian Accounting

Standard (IndAs) which will be mandatory for companies from (a) 2015 (b) 2016 (c) 2017 (d) 2018 (e) 2020

146. As part of “Make in India” plan which Indian company has entered into a joint venture with Israel’s Rafael Advance Defence System to develop missiles, remote weapons etc. recently (a) DRDO (b) HAL (c) Reliance (d) Kalyani Group (e) None of these

147. Sri Lankan President Maithripala Serisena has reinstated the rank of which former army chief who was jailed by the previous govt. (a) General Chrishantha de Silva (b) General Daya Ratnayake (c) General Sarath Fonseka (d) Both (b) and (c) (e) None of these

148. Govind Pansare who was killed recently is a famous (a) Actor (b) Director (c) Film Maker (d) Communist Leader (e) None of these

149. Aditya Birla group firm Hindalco Industries get the Gare Palma IV/5 mine in e‐auction located in (a) Odisha (b) Chhatisgarh (c) Goa (d) Jharkhand (e) Karnataka

150. Central govt. launched the nationwide Soil Health Card scheme recently from (a) Jaipur (b) Udaipur (c) Suratgarh (d) Almora (e) None of these

151. Dilip Sanghvi who has taken over Mukesh Ambani as the richest Indian as per market value beads which group of company (a) Sun Pharmaceuticals (b) Essar Industries (c) DFL (d) Tech Mahindra (e) None of these

152. Two tropical cyclones Marcia and Lam hit which country in Feb 20th 2015. (a) USA (b) Australia (c) Philippines (d) Japan (e) None of these

153. The Aero India 2015 show was organised as the Yelahanka Air station in

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(a) Chennai (b) Hyderabad (c) Patna (d) Bengaluru (e) Kochi

154. Daggubati Ramanaidu who died recently is a famous name in the field of (a) Literature (b) Cricket (c) Dance (d) Film (e) Science

155. Indian Army has expressed its reservation for withdrawal of AFSPA from (a) Assam (b) Manipur (c) Nagaland (d) J & K (e) None of these

156. Bharti Airtel has partnered with UNICEF to provide health, education and youth focused content to 17 nations in (a) Asia (b) Africa (c) Europe (d) North America (e) South America

157. The 5th India‐Myanmar Joint Trade Committee meeting was held in February at (a) Yangoon (b) New Delhi (c) Mumbai (d) Nay Pyi Taw (e) Chennai

158. Recently Bihar govt. has included which caste in the Mahadalit list (a) Dom (b) Chamar (c) Dhobi (d) Dusadh (e) None of these

159. News portal Mashable which launched Mashable India recently belong to which country (a) Japan (b) China (c) USA (d) England (e) Germany

160. Which country has alleged ISIS militants of human organ harvesting (a) Syria (b) Lebanon (c) Iraq (d) Egypt (e) All of these

161. Ashton Carter is sworn in as the new USA Secretary of (a) Finance (b) Commerce (c) Defence (d) Home (e) Foreign

162. Infosys has secured a multi‐year multi‐million dollar contract with which bank to provide service to it. (a) Citi Bank (b) ABN AMRO (c) American Express (d) HSBC Bank (e) Doha Bank

163. Anil Ambani led Reliance Group has declared to establish India’s first $ 100 billion defence Smart City in (a) Gujarat (b) Odisha (c) Maharashtra (d) Bihar (e) Telengana

164. Balasubramaniam Venkataramani has been appointed as new MD & CEO of (a) Bombay Stock Exchange (b) OTCEI (c) Multi‐Commodity Exchange (d) NSE (e) None of these

165. How many Indians have been shortlisted for the Mars one mission in 2014 (a) 5 (b) 6 (c) 4 (d) 3 (e) None of these

166. Enforcement Directorate has slapped a fine of what amount on BCCI IPL for violating forex law (a) Rs. 485 cr. (b) Rs. 525 cr. (c) Rs. 425 cr. (d) Rs. 345 cr. (e) None of these

167. R.R Patil who died recently was the former Home Minister of which state who imposed a ban on dance bar. (a) Gujarat (b) Maharashtra (c) Karnataka (d) Bihar (e) None of these

168. Which state govt. has decided to set up Gram Sachivalaya in the state (a) Bihar (b) Karnataka (c) Gujarat (d) Haryana (e) Delhi

169. Recently India has signed civil nuclear agreement with which neighbouring country (a) Nepal (b) Afghanistan (c) Bangladesh (d) Sri Lanka (e) Bhutan

170. Col. Gen. Salukav Oleg Leanidovic who visited India recently is the defence minister of (a) Ukraine (b) Israel (c) Myanmar (d) Russia (e) USA

171. Bloomberg Philanthropies a foundation headed by former New York Mayor will assist which Municipal Corporation to reduce road accident (a) Delhi (b) Brehatmumbai (c) Kolkata (d) Bhubaneswar (e) None of these

172. Which Indian Oil Company has declared to invest Rs. 7812 cr. in fuel equality up gradation project

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(a) ONGC (b) HPCL (c) BPCL (d) IOC (e) All of these

173. NTPC will invest what amount in next 5 years to execute green energy project (a) $ 100 million (b) $ 10 billion (c) $ 50 billion (d) $ 100 billion (e) $ 25 billion

174. At the 8th IPL auction Yuvraj Singh turned out to be the most expensive buy at (a) Rs. 20 cr. (b) Rs. 16 cr. (c) Rs. 26 cr. (d) Rs. 15 cr. (e) Rs. 12 cr.

175. Rajender Puri who died recently is a famous (a) Scientist (b) Novelist (c) Economist (d) Cartoonist (e) Sports Person

176. Who has been appointed as Director of the Space Application Centre (SAC) at Ahmadabad? (a) Tapan Mishra (b) N.C. Saxena (c) Tessy Thomas (d) C.N. Rao (e) None of these

177. Jammu & Kashmir coalition govt. will be between BJP and (a) NC (b) NCP (c) PDP (d) AAP (e) JEM

178. It has been reported that higher level of pollution will reduced the life span of Indians by (a) 2 yrs (b) 3 yrs (c) 5 yrs (d) 4 yrs (e) 7 yrs

179. Who is the Chairman of NGT (a) Justice N.K. Sahay (b) Justice Swatnter Kumar (c) Justice V.K. Saxena (d) Justice Kuldip Singh (e) None of these

180. The Surajkund Craft Mela is organised each year by which state (a) Rajasthan (b) Delhi (c) Haryana (d) Madhya Pradesh (e) Uttar Pradesh

181. Sikorsky a helicopter manufacturer from which country has expressed its interest to produce helicopter in India (a) Russia (b) USA (c) Israel (d) France (e) Italy

182. P5 + 1 negotiation is related to which country’s nuclear programme (a) Pakistan (b) Bangladesh

(c) Iran (d) North Korea (e) Syria

183. SEBI has imposed trading restriction on how many financial entities (a) 42 (b) 33 (c) 57 (d) 77 (e) 43

184. For Assam’s power sector improvement govt. of India has signed a $ 50.7 million MOU with (a) IMF (b) IBRD (c) ADB (d) IDA (e) IFC

185. International Mother Language Day is observed across the world on (a) 21st Feb (b) 22nd Feb (c) 23rd Feb (d) 24th Feb (e) 25th Feb

186. Addressing the Budget session of the Parliament President Pranab Mukherjee declared the govt’s decision of Housing for all by (a) 2017 (b) 2020 (c) 2022 (d) 2025 (e) 2030

187. The President has declared which programme for the skill up gradation in Traditional Arts and Crafts. (a) UJJYOG (b) SAHAYA (c) SWABHIMAN (d) USTTAD (e) None of these

188. Nanaji Deshmukh scheme has been declared by the govt. for construction of Hostel for (a) De‐notified tribes (b) Nomadic tribes (c) Semi‐nomadic tribes (d) All of these (e) None of these

189. Gandhian Anna Hazare started his two day protest at Jantar Mantar demanding the repeal of which ordinance by NDA govt. (a) Lokpal (b) Land Acquisition (c) Defence Purchase (d) Citizenship (e) All of these

190. LCH‐TD‐3 is related to (a) Nuclear research (b) Space research (c) Mission to Venus (d) Light Combat Helicopter (e) None of these

191. Indian Bank Association called off its strike as the management agreed for a wage hike of

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(a) 10% (b) 12% (c) 15% (d) 20% (e) 25%

192. Which sector in Indian economy has attracted highest FDI by December 2014 (a) Defence (b) Services (c) Telecom (d) Insurance (e) Computer Software & Hardware

193. Bangladesh govt. has linked the deportation of Arun Chettia to the ratification of Land Boundary agreement by India. Arun Chettia is a leader of which insurgent group (a) NDFB (b) AJSU (c) ULFA (d) NSCN (e) None of these

194. Which film get the best film award at the 2015 Oscar Ceremony? (a) The Theory of Everything (b) Stile Alice (c) Birdman (d) 12 yr. a slave (e) None of these

195. Pakistan has approved a multi‐billion dollar strategic economic corridor linking its Gwadar Port with (a) Myanmar (b) Sri Lanka (c) Afghanistan (d) China (e) Bangladesh

196. Which Indian Submarine met with a accident recently (a) INS Sankuch (b) INS Sindhuratna (c) INS Sindhughos (d) INS Sindhurakhayak (e) INS Kolkata

197. After more than a decade of war negotiation will start between Afghan govt. and (a) Al‐Quida (b) JeM (c) LeT (d) Taliban (e) Boko Haram

198. Who won the Best Actor award at 2015 Oscar Award (a) Eddie Redmayne (b) Julianne Moore (c) Alejandro Inarrite (d) Joseph Feder (e) None of these

199. Julienne Moore won the best actress award for which film at 2015 Oscar ceremony (a) Birdman (b) Still Alice (c) The Theory of Everything

(d) Last Harrizon (e) None of these

200. Turkish soldiers ventured into which country to attack the ISIS militant base there (a) Syria (b) Egypt (c) Iraq (d) All of these (e) None of these

♦♦♦♦

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ANSWER KEYS 1 d 41 d 81 c 121 C 161 C

2 c 42 a 82 c 122 D 162 B

3 c 43 C 83 D 123 B 163 C

4 C 44 C 84 C 124 D 164 C

5 D 45 B 85 C 125 A 165 D

6 B 46 B 86 B 126 B 166 C

7 C 47 C 87 C 127 B 167 B

8 B 48 C 88 A 128 D 168 D

9 D 49 C 89 B 129 E 169 D

10 B 50 B 90 C 130 C 170 D

11 c 51 B 91 A 131 D 171 B

12 a 52 B 92 A 132 D 172 D

13 b 53 B 93 B 133 C 173 B

14 c 54 A 94 C 134 C 174 B

15 b 55 C 95 C 135 D 175 D

16 c 56 A 96 b 136 B 176 A

17 d 57 A 97 c 137 E 177 C

18 d 58 C 98 C 138 C 178 B

19 d 59 B 99 D 139 C 179 B

20 b 60 a 100 D 140 C 180 C

21 c 61 a 101 D 141 B 181 B

22 B 62 b 102 A 142 C 182 C

23 A 63 D 103 D 143 B 183 B

24 B 64 C 104 C 144 E 184 C

25 C 65 A 105 A 145 B 185 A

26 C 66 B 106 B 146 D 186 B

27 B 67 B 107 A 147 C 187 D

28 C 68 A 108 C 148 D 188 D

29 D 69 C 109 A 149 B 189 B

30 A 70 C 110 C 150 C 190 D

31 D 71 C 111 D 151 A 191 C

32 B 72 D 112 A 152 B 192 B

33 C 73 B 113 D 153 D 193 C

34 A 74 D 114 B 154 D 194 C

35 D 75 A 115 B 155 D 195 D

36 C 76 B 116 D 156 B 196 C

37 A 77 C 117 D 157 D 197 D

38 D 78 C 118 C 158 D 198 A

39 B 79 E 119 D 159 C 199 B

40 B 80 C 120 C 160 c 200 A

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40 MCQ ON COMPUTER 1. Which of the following is a part of the Central

Processing Unit? (a) Printer (b) Key board (c) Mouse (d) Arithmetic & Logic unit (e) None of these

2. CAD stands for (a) Computer aided design (b) Computer algorithm for design (c) Computer application in design (d) All of the above (e) None of these

3. Which of the following printer cannot print graphics? (a) Ink‐jet (b) Daisy Wheel (c) Laser (d) Dot‐matrix (e) None of these

4. A program written in machine language is called? (a) Assembler (b) Object code (c) Computer (d) Machine (e) None of these

5. The father of Modern Computer is (a) Charles Babbage (b) Von‐nuumann (c) Danies Ritchel (d) Blaise Pascal (e) None of these

6. The Word FTP stands for (a) File Translate Protocol (b) File Transit Protocol (c) File Transfer protocol (d) file typing protocol (e) None of these

7. The lowest form of Computer language is called (a) BASIC (b) FORTRAN (c) Machine Language (d) COBOL (e) None of these

8. Best Quality graphics is produced by (a) Dot Matix (b) Laser Printer (c) Inkjet Printer (d) Plotter (e) None of these

9. Memory which forgets every thing when you switch off the power is known as (a) Corrupted (b) Volatile (c) Non‐Volatile (d) Non‐Corrupted (e) None of these

10. The linking of computers with a communication system is called (a) Networking (b) Pairing (c) Interlocking (d) Assembling (e) Sharing

11. The 16 bit Microprocessor means that it has (a) 16 address lines (b) 16 Buses (c) 16 Data lines (d) 16 routes (e) None of these

12. Data going into the computer is called (a) Output (b) Algorithm (c) Input (d) Calculations (e) Flow chart

13. Which of the following refers to a small, single‐site network? (a) LAN (b) DSL (c) RAM (d) USB (e) CPU

14. Microsoft Office is (a) Shareware (b)Public domain software (c) Open‐sourse software (d) A vertical market application (e) An application suite

15. How many options does a BINARY choice offer (a) None (b) One (c) Two (d) it depends on the amount of memory on the

computer (e) It depends on the speed of the computer's

processor 16. A collection of program that controls how your computer

system runs and processes information is called (a) Operating System (b) Computer (c) Office (d) Compiler (e) Interpreter

17. Computer connected to a LAN (Local Area Network) can (a) run faster (b) go on line (c) share information and /or share peripheral

equipment (d) E‐mail (e) None of these

18. Information travels between components on the mother board through (a) Flash memory (b) CMOS (c) Bays (d) Buses (e) Peripherals

19. How are data organized in a spreadsheet? (a) Lines & spaces (b) Layers & Planes (c) Height & Width (d) Rows & Columns (e) None of these

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20. The blinking symbol on the computer screen is called the (a) mouse (b) logo (c) hand (d) palm (e) cursor

21. A fault in a computer program which prevents it from working correctly is known as (a) Boot (b) Bug (c) Biff (d) Strap (e) None of these

22. A self replicating program, similar to a virus which was taken from a 1970s science fiction novel by John Bruner entitled the Shockwave Rider is _________ (a) Bug (b) Vice (c) Lice (d) Worm (e) None of these

23. A _______ is a bi‐stable electronic circuit that has two stable states. (a) Multivibrator (b) Flip‐flop (c) Logic gates (d) laten (e) None of these

24. Unwanted repetitious messages, such as unsolicited bulk e‐mail is known as (a) Spam (b) Trash (c) Calibri (d) Courier (e) None of these

25. DOS stands for (a) Disk Operating System (b) Disk operating session (c) Digital Operating System (d) Digital Open system (e) None of these

26. Who is the chief of Miocrosoft (a) Babbage (b) Bill Gates (c) Bill Clinton (d) Bush (e) None of these

27. Which of the following are input devices. (a) Keyboard (b) Mouse (c) Card reader (d) Scanner (e) All of these

28. Examples of output devices are (a) Screen (b) Printer (c) Speaker (d) All of these (e) None of these

29. Which of the following is also known as brain of computer (a) Control unit (b) Central Processing unit (c) Arithmatic and language unit (d) Monitor (e) None of these

30. IBM stands for (a) Internal Business Management (b) International Business Management (c) International Business Machines (d) Internal Business Machines (e) None of these

31. ___________ translates and executes program at run time line by line (a) Compiler (b) Interpreter (c) Linker (d) Loader (e) None of these

32. ___________ is an OOP principle (a) Structured programming (b) Procedural programming (c) Inheritance (d) Linking (e) None of these

33. COBOL is widely used in _______ applications (a) Commercial (b) Scientific (c) Space (d) Mathematical (e) None of these

34. RAM stands for (a) Random origin money (b) Random only memory (c) Read only memory (d) Random access memory (e) None of these

35. 1 Byte = ? (a) 8 bits (b) 4 bits (c) 2 bits (d) 9 bits (e) None of these

36. SMPS stands for (a) Switched mode power supply (b) Start mode power supply (c) Store mode power supply (d) Single mode power supply (e) None of these

37. The device used to carry digital data on analog lines is called as (a) Modem (b) Multiplexer (c) Modulator (d) Demodulator (e) None of these

38. VDU is also called (a) Screen (b) Monitor (c) Both a & b (d) printer (e) None of these

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39. BIOS stands for (a) Basic Input Output system (b) Binary Input output system (c) Basic Input Off system (d) all the above (e) None of these

40. Father of 'C' programming language (a) Dennis Ritchie (b) Prof Jhon Kemeny (c) Thomas Kurtz (d) Bill Gates (e) None of these

ANSWER KEYS

1 d 9 b 17 c 25 a 33 a

2 a 10 a 18 d 26 b 34 d

3 b 11 c 19 d 27 e 35 a

4 b 12 c 20 e 28 d 36 a

5 a 13 a 21 b 29 b 37 a

6 c 14 e 22 d 30 c 38 c

7 c 15 c 23 b 31 b 39 a

8 d 16 a 24 a 32 c 40 a

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DESCRIPTIVE ENGLISH DIGITAL BANKING STANDOUTS In the final installment of a two‐part series, Global Finance recognizes the best corporate/institutional and consumer Internet banks globally and in six regions, as well as an overall winner. We spotlight the financial institutions around the world that are leading the way in digital banking services that generate strong business results. The winners of the 15th Annual World’s Best Internet Bank Awards were selected based on submissions from firms that sought to be considere(d) This year’s edition attracted 293 entries from banks from 116 countries around the world, up 17% from 251 entries last year. Representatives from Infosys, a global consulting, technology and outsourcing solutions firm, made up the judging panel, providing input for final selections. The awards were presented to winners on October 28 at Global Finance’s annual gala awards dinner at The Harvard Club in New York City. This year’s awards have gone to the global banks that are blazing a path of innovation and success in an increasingly digital worl(d) The competition is stiff and the pace of change is rapid, but the top banks find ways to keep advancing and satisfying customers’ demanding digital tastes. Criteria for picking these leaders include breadth of product offerings, success in shifting existing customers to online products and services, ability to acquire and retain new customers, and use of digital platforms to improve business processes, cut costs and deliver other measurable business benefits. GLOBAL STAND‐OUTS What attributes stood out about this year’s global winners? Continuing the trend of the past couple of years, the leaders are focusing on interoperability, consolidating platforms, and investing more on technology innovation in the digital space, according to Infosys. “Almost all top‐rated banks are providing more, and more‐integrated, Web experience to their clients,” the Infosys team sai(d) On the commercial banking side, Infosys observed an increased focus on mobility, portal integration and dashboards by the leading players. Here’s a glimpse at some of the award‐winning banks and the Internet banking products and services that helped them get selecte(d) Citi was named the Best Global Corporate/Institutional Internet Bank and also won the Best Overall Internet Bank awar(d) Among its initiatives, Citi has automated procedures that save time and cut costs in the mortgage

application process and has invested in products to meet the growing demand for mobile banking, according to Don Callahan, Citi’s global head of operations and technology. The CitiDirect BE (“banking evolution”) online commercial banking platform includes online customer support, cross‐channel and product integration, wire transfers, and liquidity management and forecasting tools. Wells Fargo, which won Best Global Corporate/Institutional Internet Bank in North America and five global corporate/institutional subcategories, was the first bank to launch corporate online banking capabilities like those in its Commercial Electronic Office portal. The CEO Office portal includes corporate mobile banking service CEO Mobile, online letter of credit initiation, online and mobile commercial deposits, and a dedicated online community for customers, according to Infosys. The CEO Mobile service continues to generate rapid growth, with active users up 30% year‐over‐year. Wells Fargo’s CEO Mobile SMS application offers SMS alerts, fraud filters and reports. In social media, Wells Fargo has started eight corporate blogs since 2006. In consumer banking, banks face intense pressure today to create the perfect customer experience for consumers who increasingly interact with their bank only through digital channels, never visiting a branch. “In the consumer banking front, the winning banks were able to understand customer emotions with the help of contextual analysis, which positively reflects on their go‐to market strategy,” the Infosys team sai(d) “Mobile banking is becoming disruptive in nature, reducing the relevance of all other channels.” The winning banks are largely satisfying those demanding customers by innovating in key areas such as apps, social media, text banking, payments and mor(e) Standard Chartered was named the Best Global Consumer Internet Bank and also won three global consumer subcategories—for bill payment and presentment, integrated consumer bank site and information‐security initiatives. The bank has 90% of its total consumer base enrolled in online banking. Its bill payment service attracted 2.5 million customer transactions in 2013. Standard Chartered offers the majority of its banking products online, and it is the only bank in the industry to provide complete straight‐through processing for products applied for online, according to Infosys. It also uses social media as a two‐way communication channel with customers and has a dedicated team of experts to oversee its social media efforts. Word of the month Inception:‐beginning; start; commencement.

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Synonyms ‐ origin, Beginning, outset, source, root, conception.

Antonyms ‐ conclusion, end, close, completion, consequence etc

Vigorous:‐Energetic, Powerful, Full of physical and Mental Strength Synonyms ‐ Active, brisk, dynamic, effective, efficient,

forceful, healthy Antonyms ‐ Apathetic, delicate, dispirited, dull, easy,

facile, feeble, helpless etc Stipulate:‐Make an oral contract or agreement in the verbal form of question and answer that is necessary to give it legal forc(e) Synonyms ‐ Impose, Designate, Specify, engage, Make

a point etc Antonyms ‐ Refuse, break,mix up, decline, break off,

discourage etc Contemplation :‐ deep thought, Planning Synonyms ‐ Meditation, deliberation, intension,

ambition etc Antonyms ‐ Ignorance, Rejection, neglect, slight,

avoidance Paradox :‐ A statement or proposition that seems self‐contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth. Synonyms ‐ Mystery, Ambiguity, Puzzle, absurdity. Antonyms ‐ Regularity, Usualness, accuracy, normality,

truth Reticent:‐ disposed to be silent or not to speak freely; reserve(d) Synonyms ‐ Reserved, bashful, uncommunicate, silent,

taciturn, tight lipped Antonomys ‐ extrovert, outgoing, confident, talkative,

unreserved Emancipate:‐ to free (a slave) from bondag(e) Synonyms ‐ Liberate, free, loosen, affranchise Antonomys ‐ Disfranchise , Enslave, detain, imprison,

incarcerate Reprimand:‐to reprove or scold severely, especially in a formal way Synonyms ‐ rebuke, castigation, blame, lecture Antonomys ‐ Compliment, Commendation, forgivness,

reward, praise

Impetuous:‐ moving with great force Synonyms ‐ Violent, Hasty Antonyms ‐ Calm, Deliberate Haughty:‐egotist peopl(e) Synonyms ‐ high handed,

egotist,conceited,cavlier,snobbish Antonomys ‐ humbble,timid,modesty,

BANKING TERMONOLOGY Zero Coupon Bond • It is a bond that is sold at good discount as it has no

coupon.Above mentioned Banking terms for interview are not only helpful for the candidates who are sitting for an interview but also for the general public as nowadays everyone is connected to the banking sector in one or the other way.

Junk Bond • High‐risk securities that have received low ratings (i.(e)

Standard & Poor’s BBB rating or below; or Moody’s BBB rating or below) and as such, produce high yields, so long as they do not go into default.

Marginal Standing Facility Rate: • scheme has become effective from 09th May, 2011

launched by the RBI. Under this scheme, Banks will be able to borrow upto 1% of their respective Net Demand and Time Liabilities. The rate of interest on the amount accessed from this facility will be 100 basis points (i.(e) 1%) above the repo rat(e) This scheme is likely to reduce volatility in the overnight rates and improve monetary transmission.

Brown Label Atm • Brown label' ATM are those Automated Teller

Machines where hardware and the lease of the ATM machine is owned by a service provider, but cash management and connectivity to banking networks is provided by a sponsor bank whose brand is used on the ATM. The `brown label' has come up as an alternative between bank‐owned ATMs and 'white label' ATMs. As in India white label ATMs were not allowed by RBI (in February, 2012, RBI has issued the draft guidelines for introduction of white ATMs, but final approval has yet to com(e)), the concept of Brown Label ATMs started picking up.

Promissory Note • Promissory Note is a promise / undertaking given by

one person in writing to another person, to pay to that person , a certain sum of money on demand or on a future day.

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Safe Custody • When articles of value like jewellery, boxes, shares,

debentures, Government bonds, Wills or other documents or articles are given to a bank for safe keeping in its safe vault, it is called safe custody.. Bank charges a fee from its clients for such safe custody.

Subordinated Bond • An issue that ranks after secured debt, debenture, and

other bonds, and after some general creditors in its claim on assets and earnings. Owners of this kind of bond stand last in line among creditors, but before equity holders, when an issuer fails financially.

Risk‐Averse, Risk‐Neutral, Risk‐Taking: • Risk‐averse describes an investor who requires greater

return in exchange for greater risk. • Risk‐neutral describes an investor who does not require

greater return in exchange for greater risk. • Risk‐taking describes an investor who will accept a

lower return in exchange for greater risk. White Label Atm • RBI has given license / permission to non‐bank entities

to open such ATMs.Non‐bank entity with a minimum net worth of Rs.100 crore, can apply for white label ATMs. (not just NBFC, any non‐bank entity can apply.) Tata Communications Payment Solutions Limited is the first company to get RBI’s permission to open White label ATMs.They started their chain under brandname “Indicash”. Other White label ATM are Muthoot Finance, Srei Infr(a), Vakrangee Software, Prizm Payments, AGS.

Base Point • One basis point is equal to one one‐hundredth of one

percentage point (0.01%). Therefore, 100 basis points would be equivalent to 1%. An interest rate of 5% is 50 basis points greater than an interest rate of 4.5%. The difference between 12.83% and 12.88% is five basis points. "The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 25 basis points," this means that Fed lowered rates by 0.25%. In finance, basis points are often written as "bps" and prounounced "beeps" or simply "points."

Virtual Banking • Internet banking is sometimes known as virtual

banking. It is called so because it has no bricks and boundaries. It is controlled by the world wide we(b)

E‐Banking • E‐Banking or electronic banking is a form of banking

where funds are transferred through exchange of electronic signals between banks and financial institution and customers ATMs, Credit Cards, Debit Cards, International Cards, Internet Banking and new

fund transfer devices like SWIFT, RTGS belong to this category.

EFT ‐ (Electronic Fund Transfer) • EFT is a device to facilitate automatic transmission and

processing of messages as well as funds from one bank branch to another bank branch and even from one branch of a bank to a branch of another bank. EFT allows transfer of funds electronically with debit and credit to relative accounts.

Plastic Money • Credit Cards, Debit Cards, ATM Cards and International

Cards are considered plastic money as like money they can enable us to get goods and services.

Priority Sector Advances • consist of loans and advances to Agriculture, Small

Scale Industry, Small Road and Water Transport Operators, Retail Trade, Small Business with limits on investment in equipments, professional and self employed persons, state sponsored organisations for lending to SC/ST, Educational Loans, Housing Finance up to certain limits, self‐help groups and consumption loans.

Minor Accounts • A minor is a person who has not attained legal age of

18 years. As per Contract Act a minor cannot enter into a contract but as per Negotiable Instrument Act, a minor can draw, negotiate, endorse, receive payment on a Negotiable Instrument so as to bind all the persons, except himself. In order to boost their deposits many banks open minor accounts with some restrictions.

Dishonour of Cheque • Non‐payment of a cheque by the paying banker with a

return memo giving reasons for the non‐payment. Default Risk: The possibility that a bond issuer will default ie, fail to repay principal and interest in a timely manner.

ABBERIVIATION • ABCI ‐ Association of Business Communicators of

India • BSA ‐ Bilateral Swap Arrangements • CTS ‐ Cheque Truncation System • DRG ‐ Development Research Group • EEA ‐ Exchange Equalisation Account • FRL ‐ Full Reservoir Level • GDRs ‐ Global Depository Receipts • HTM ‐ Held‐to‐Maturity • IRDA ‐ Insurance Regulatory and Development

Authority

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• JDY‐Jan Dhan Yojana • KYC ‐ Know Your Customer • LIBOR ‐ London Inter‐Bank Offer Rate • MSOE ‐ Minimum Standards of Operational

Efficiency • NPCI ‐ National Payments Corporation of India • OSMOS ‐ Off‐Site Monitoring and Surveillance • PAN ‐ Permanent Account Number • QMS ‐ Quality Management System • RTGS ‐ Real Time Gross Settlement • SARFAESI ‐ Securitisation and Reconstruction of

Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest

• TALF ‐ Term Asset‐Backed Securities Loan Facility • UNDP ‐ United Nations Development Programme • VaR ‐ Value at Risk • WMA ‐ Ways and Means Advances • XBRL ‐ Xtensible Business Reporting Language • ZTC ‐ Zonal Training Centre

♦♦♦♦

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G.K.QUESTION QUESTION FOR SSC/RAILWAY 1. Reasons for the growth of Regional Political Parties in

India is? (a) Lack of effective opposition (b)Economic disparities among the States (c) Failure of the national parties (d) All of the above

2. The first state in India to be formed on linguistic basis is (a) Andhra Pradesh (b) Odisha (c) Karnataka (d) Maharashtra

3. The only Union Territory which has High Court of its own is (a) Chandigarh (b) Daman and Diu (c) Delhi (d) Lakshadweep

4. One of the following subjects is not in the State List: (a) Market and fairs (b) Bankruptcy and insolvency (c) Police and Prisons (d) Public health and sanitation

5. Who was the founder of Slave Dynasty in India? (a) Balban (b) Qutub‐ud‐din Aibak (c) Muhammad Ghori (d) Iltutmish

6. Chandragupta Maurya was the (a) Great‐grandfather of Ashoka (b) Brother of Ashoka (c) Father of Ashoka (d) Grandfather of Ashoka

7. Who was known as ‘Lakh Baksh’? (a) Iltutmish (b) Raziya (c) Qutub‐ud‐din Aibak (d) Babar

8. Who was among the pioneer among the social reforms? (a) Ramkrishna Paramhans (b) Swami Vivekananda (c) Raja Rammohun Roy (d) Dayanand Saraswati

9. Which of the following classes did not participate in the Revolt of 1857? 1. Agriculture labourers 2. Money lenders 3. Peasants 4. Zamidars (a) 2 only (b) 2 and 4 (c) 1 only (d) 1 and 2

10. Pradhanmantri Bharat Jodo Pariyojna is related to (a) Linking of rivers (b) Development of Roads (c) Communication

(d) Social Integration 11. CD‐ROM is a

(a) Magnetic Memory (b) Secondary Memory (c) Semiconductor Memory (d) Memory Register

12. pH value of blood is (a) In between 8 and 10 (b) Greater than 10 (c) Less than 6 (d) In between 7 and 8

13. Great Barrier Reef is situated in (a) Australia (b) Nova Scotia (c) North Sea (d) Southern China

14. In India, the longest day occurs on (a) April 13 (b) October 13 (c) June 21 (d) March 21

15. Which one of the following is not found in new alluvial soil? (a) Humus (b) Gas (c) Minerals (d) Water

16. Palghat Gap connects Tamil Nadu with (a) Kerala (b) Karnataka (c) Andhra Pradesh (d) Both (a) and (b)

17. Jodhpur receives less rainfall than Delhi because (a) Arabian Sea runs parallel to Aravali (b) It is on leeward side of the winds (c) Condensation does not place there (d) All of above factors

18. Bamboo is a (a) Tree (b) Climber (c) Shrub (d) Herb

19. Which vitamins are those which if taken in excess can be dangerous as they are stored in the body? (a) B Complex (b) E and C (c) B and C (d) A and D

20. Which one of the following constitutes two best reasons for distinguishing the living from the non‐living? (a) Respiration and excretion (b) Reproduction and locomotion (c) Irritability and locomotion (d) Growth and locomotion

21. The expansion of (D)(D)T. is (a) Dichloro Diphenyl Trichloroethane (b) Dichloro Diamine Trichloroethane (c) Dichloro Diphenyl Tetrachloroethane (d) None of the above

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22. Which of the following animals is a parasite? (a) Amoeba (b) Sponge (c) Plasmodium (d) Earthworm

23. Which of the following respires by gills? (a) Cray‐fish (b) Star‐fish (c) Silver‐fish (d) Jelly‐fish

24. The book ‘Friends and Foes’ was written by (a) Rajmohan Gandhi (b) Sheikh Majibur Rahman (c) Lord Tennyson (d) Dr. S. Radhakrishnan

25. On the lines of ‘Place on wheels’, a new train ‘Deccan Odyssey’ is operated between (a) Karnataka and Kerala (b) Kerala and Tamil Nadu (c) Tamil Nadu and Karnataka (d) Maharashtra and Goa

26. Name of the famous paper which Gandhiji edited to propagate his ideas? (a) Harijan (b) Satyagrah (c) Khadi (d) Swadeshi

27. The aeroplane that dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima was? (a) White Storm (b) Thunder Power (c) Enola Gay (d) Black Light

28. Which Indian Commercial Bank became the first in provide mobile ATM service? (a) HDFC Bank (b) SBI (c) ICICI Bank (d) IDBI Bank

29. Sivakasi, which recently witnessed major explosions in the cracker manufacturing units, is situated in the State of (a) Kerala (b) Chhattisgarh (c) Tamil Nadu (d) Andhra Pradesh

30. Ajanta‐Ellora Caves are situated near (a) Ajmer (b) Aurangabad (c) Patna (d) Jaipur

31. Who is the author of the book ‘Apprenticeship of a Mahatma’ is based (a) Arundhati Roy (b) Shyam Benegal (c) Shobha De (d) Fatima Meer

32. The ‘break‐even point’ is where (a) Marginal revenue equals marginal cost (b) Average revenue equals average cost (c) Total revenue equals total cost (d) None of the above

33. South‐south dialogue is associated with (a) Co‐operation among developing nations (b) Arms conference (c) Summit meeting between the developed and the

developing countries (d) All of the above

34. Among the following, which one is not a football club? (a) Arsenal (b) Aston Villa (c) Chelsea (d) Monte Carlo

35. Rate of interest is determined by (a) The rate of return on the capital invested (b) Central Government (c) Liquidity preference (d) Commercial Banks

36. Which of the following has not been a component of the agricultural strategy that brought about the Green Revolution? (a) Greater intensity of cropping (b) Guaranteed maximum prices (c) New agricultural technology (d) Package of inputs

37. Which of the following makes the skin layer impervious to water? (a) Collagen (b) Melanin (c) Keratin (d) Chitin

38. Generally, the soil of the northern plains of India id formed by (a) Degradation (b) Aggradation (c) Weathering in situ (d) Erosion

39. Two richest source of edible protein are (a) Meat and eggs (b) Milk and vegetable (c) Soyabean and groundnut (d) Some type of algae and other micro‐organism

40. Which of the following weeds has been found useful to check water pollution caused by industrial effluents? (a) Parthenium (b) Elephant grass (c) Water hyacinth (d) Both (a) and (b) above

41. Mughal presence in the Red Fort ceased with the fall of (a) Aurangzeb (b) Muhammad Shah (c) Shah Alam (d) Bahadur Shah ‘Zafar’

42. Who was the first known Gupta ruler? (a) Sri Gupta (b) Chandragupta I (c) Ghatotkacha (d) Kumaragupta I

43. Which of the following international prizes/awards is given for outstanding contribution on the field of the journalism? (a) Booker Prize (b) Pulitzer Prize (c) Sakharov Prize (d) Sullivan Prize

44. Who is recognised as the Father of Geometry? (a) Pythagoras (b) Euclid

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(c) Johann Kepler (d) Rene Descartes 45. With which of the following fields is Ben Kingsley

associated? (a) Sports (b) Medical Science (c) Motion Picture (d) Social Service

46. Who among the following leaders was not assassinated? (a) Mahatma Gandhi (b) Liaqat Ali Khan (c) Muhammed Ali Jinnah (d) Lord Louis Mountbatten

47. When was colour TV transmission introduced in India? (a) 1980 (b) 1981 (c) 1982 (d) 1984

48. Who was the founder Director of TIFR? (a) S. S. Bhatnagar (b) H. J. Bhabha (c) M. N. Saha (d) Vikaram Sarabhai

49. When was ISRO set up? (a) 1965 (b) 1969 (c) 1971 (d) 1976

50. How many countries have exploded the atom bomb before India? (a) 5 (b) 6 (c) 4 (d) 3

51. New Economics Policy was introduced in India in (a) 1971 (b) 1981 (c) 1991 (d) 2001

52. Which of the following is not an instrument of credit control used by the Central Bank? (a) Bank rate (b) Open market operations (c) Selective credit controls (d) Foreign exchange controls

53. In which type economy National Income and Domestic Income is equal? (a) Closed Economy (b) Open Economy (c) Developed Economy (d) Developing Economy

54. The term Capital Consumption Allowance (CCA) means (a) A part of income used for consumption (b) Increase in the value of capital assets (c) Depreciation value of capital goods (d) A fund used to purchase machinery for the

production of consumption goods 55. In the following, who is a self employed person?

(a) Teacher teaching in school (b) Doctor appointed in hospital (c) Railway employee (d) Businessman

56. Who rules the state in the event of declaration of emergency under Article 365? (a) Prime Minister (b) Chief Minister (c) Governor (d) Chief Justice of High Court

57. National Commission for Backward Classes was set up in (a) 1991 (b) 1992 (c) 1993 (d) 1994

58. Official language of the Indian Union is (a) Hindi in Devanagari script (b) Hindi and English (c) English (d) Hindi, English and Urdu

59. Panchayatiraj form of rural government was first adopted by (a) Rajasthan & Madhya Pradesh (b) Rajasthan & West Bengal (c) Rajasthan & Andhra Pradesh (d) Rajasthan & Uttar Pradesh

60. The Constitution of India provides for citizenship by (a) Birth (b) Residence (c) Naturalisation (d) All the Above

61. Who assumed the title Muhammad bin‐Tuglaq and became the ruler of Delhi in 1325 (A)D? (a) Juna Khan (b) Nasiruddin Shah (c) Chengiz Khan (d) Illtutmish

62. The Sikh Guru put to death by Aurangzeb was (a) Arjan Singh (b) Hargobind (c) Tegh Bahadur (d) Harkishan

63. The Home Rule Movement in India was started by (a) S.N. Banerjee and W.C Banerjee (b) Annie Besant and Tilak (c) Mahatma Gandhi and Motilal Nehru (d) Annie Besant and Gokhale

64. Who among the following was responsible for the revival of Hinduism in 19th Century? (a) Swami Dayanand (b) Swami Vevekananda (c) Guru Shankaracharya (d) Raja Rammohan Rai

65. “Give me blood, I will give you freedom.” These words are attributed to (a) Khudiram Bose (b) Bhagat Singh (c) Subhash Chandra Bose (d) Veer Savarkar

58



66. India’s northern most latitude is (a) 36° 6’ NA (b) 37° 8’ N (c) 37° 6’ N (d) 8° 4’ N

67. The Bhabar plains have been developed by (a) glacial deposit (b) wind deposit (c) river deposit (d) deposition I the lakes

68. Subsistence type of farming is practiced in (a) Delta (b) Plateau (c) Hill (d) Coast

69. Africa is separated from Europe by ______. (a) Red Sea (b) Mediterranean Sea (c) Atlantic Ocean (d) Persian Gulf

70. Which of the following rivers is recharged by subsoil water? (a) Godavari (b) Damodar (c) Narmada (d) Krishna

71. The dolphin is (a) Fish (b) Reptile (c) Mammal (d) Turtle

72. Animals which have a well‐marked digestive cavity are put under (a) Metazoa (b) Bryozoa (c) Parazoa (d) Enterozoa

73. Mushrooms are (a) Fungi (b) Viruses (c) Bacteria (d) Protozoans

74. Which one of the following is an endocrine as well as an exocrine gland? (a) Pituitary (b) Thyroid (c) Pancreas (d) Parathyroid

75. Which one of the following is associated with kidney disorder? (a) Ventilator (b) Dialysis (c) Pacemaker (d) Baropacing

76. Most important function of the food is to (a) get energy (b) satisfy hunger (c) help growth of the body (d) relish the taste

77. A racing car is designed to have a broad base and low height such that its centre of gravity is (a) very low (b) in the middle (c) raised (d) outside the car

78. Energy transformation in a microphone is form (a) sound to electrical

(b) electrical to sound (c) sound to mechanical (d) mechanical to sound

79. The time‐period of a simple pendulum is independent of its (a) length (b) mass (c) location on the Earth (d) amplitude of vibration

80. What happens when some charge is placed on a soap bubble? (a) Its radius decrease (b) Its radius increase (c) The bubble collapse (d) The bubble expand

81. The last three letters of the domain name describe the type of (a) organisation (b) connectivity (c) server (d) protocol

82. A RAM (a) is a random access memory (b) is a volatile memory (c) is either static or dynamic memory (d) has all of the above characteristics

83. Naturally occurring heaviest element is (a) aluminium (b) iron (c) silicon (d) uranium

84. Which of the following has highest density? (a) Charcoal (b) Coke (c) Diamond (d) Graphite

85. When a gas expands to a region of low pressure, its temperature (a) increase (b) decrease (c) remains same (d) first increases, then decreases

86. Most of the explosions in mines occur due to the mixing of (a) hydrogen with oxygen (b) oxygen with acetylene (c) methane with air (d) carbon dioxide with ethane

87. Which of the following affects biodiversity? (a) Environmental Pollution (b) Ocean acidification (c) Climate change (d) All of the above

88. What was Montreal protocol concerned with? (a) Checking global warming (b) Checking ozone depletion (c) Both (a) and (b) (d) (a), (b) and protecting biodiversity

59



89. Formation of acid rain is due to (a) Water pollution (b) Noise pollution (c) Land pollution (d) Air pollution

90. Enormous population expansion has led to the problem of (a) Rising levels of atmosphere CO2 (b) Global warming (c) Increase in pollution level (d) All of the above

91. Which of the following festivals is celebrated on Prophet Mohammed’s birthday? (a) Id‐ul‐Zuha (b) Id‐el‐Milad (c) Id‐ul‐Fitr (d) Muharram

92. The Noble Peace Prize is awarded in which city? (a) Brussels (b) Geneva (c) Oslo (d) Stockholm

93. Which one of the following pairs of cities have two Headquarters each of Indian Railway Zones? (a) Kolkata and Chennai (b) Kolkata and Mumbai (c) Mumbai and Secunderabad (d) Mumbai and Chennai

94. Which one of the following has recently conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Letters ((D)Lit.) on UN Secretary General Ban‐Ki‐Moon? (a) Jamia Millia Islamia University (b) Lal Bahadur Shastri Sanskrit University (c) G.G.S. Indraprastha University (d) I.I.T. Delhi

95. Who amongst the following directed the award winning film “Taare Zamin Par”? (a) Madhur Bhandarkar (b) Salman Khan (c) Aamir Khan (d) Sanjay Leela Bhansali

96. The hill famous for treating mentally depressed persons in Tamil Nadu is (a) Nilgiri (b) Kutralam (c) Javadi (d) Anaimalai

97. Who among the following was the first Indian to receive the Noble Prize? (a) Dr. C.V. Raman (b) V.S. Naipal (c) Mother Teresa (d) Rabindranath Tagore

98. Which of the following twin city is correct? (a) Cochin – Ernakulam (b) Bangalore – Mysore (c) Mumbai – Pune

(d) Chenna – Chingleput 99. Who said, “Inflation is unjust but deflation is

inexpedient. Of the two, deflation is worse”? (a) J.M. Keynes (b) Amartya Sen (c) J.G. Gurlay (d) J.N. Bhagwati

100. The civilian award bestowed by the President of India to person for rendering exceptional and distinguished service in any field is (a) Bharat Ratna (b) Padma Shri (c) Padma Vibhushan (d) Padma Bhushan

ANSWER KEYS 1 a 21 a 41 d 61 a 81 a

2 a 22 c 42 b 62 c 82 d

3 c 23 a 43 b 63 b 83 d

4 c 24 b 44 b 64 a 84 c

5 b 25 d 45 c 65 c 85 b

6 a 26 a 46 c 66 c 86 c

7 c 27 c 47 c 67 c 87 a

8 c 28 c 48 b 68 b 88 b

9 c 29 c 49 b 69 b 89 d

10 b 30 b 50 b 70 c 90 d

11 b 31 d 51 c 71 c 91 b

12 d 32 c 52 d 72 d 92 c

13 a 33 a 53 a 73 a 93 b

14 c 34 d 54 c 74 c 94 a

15 a 35 c 55 d 75 b 95 c

16 a 36 b 56 c 76 a 96 a

17 d 37 d 57 c 77 a 97 d

18 c 38 b 58 a 78 a 98 a

19 d 39 c 59 c 79 b 99 a

20 a 40 b 60 d 80 b 100 a

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PRACTICE SET FOR UPCOMING EXAM

REASONING Directions (Q.1‐2) : Four of the following five are alike and hence from a group. Which of the following does not belong to the group? 1. (a) Cricket (b) Volley ball

(c) Chess (d) Table‐tennis (e) Badminton

2. (a) Paragraph (b) Sentence (c) Page (d) Words (e) Alphabets

Directions (Q.3‐4) : Study the following information carefully and answer the given questions : Point B is 12 metres south of point A Point C is 24 metres east point B Point D is 8 metres south of point C Point D is 12 metres east of point E and point F is 8 metres north of point E 3. If a man has to travel to point E from Point A (through

these points by the shortest distance), which of the following points will he pass through first? (a) Point C (b) Point D (c) Point F (d) Point B (e) None

4. If a man is standing facing north at point C, how far and in which direction is point F? (a) 12 metres west (b) 24 metres east (c) 12 metres east (d) 24 metres west (e) None of these

5. In a class of 20 students, Alisha's rank is 15th from the top. Manav is 4 ranks above Alish. What is Manav's rank from the bottom? (a) 10th (b) 11th (c) 9th (d) 12th (e) None of these

6. If each vowel in the word HABITUAL is changed to the next letter in the English alphabetical series and each consonant is changed to the previous letter in the English alphabetical series, which of the following will be fourth from the left? (a) A (b) S (c) J (d) H (e) None of these

Directions (Q.7‐10) : Study the following information to answer the given questions :

Seven animated movies‐ Up, Finding Nemo, Ice Age, Aladdin, Shark Tale, Beauty and the Beast, The Incredibles, were screened during a children's workshop not necessarily in the same order. The workshop started on Monday and ended on Sunday. Only one movie was screened on each day. 'Beauty and the Beast' was screened on Wednesday. ‘The Incredibies' was screened on the fourth day after 'Up' was screene(d) 'Ice Age' was screened before Thursday but not on Monday. 'Shark Tale' and "Aladdin' were not screened on Saturday but 'Shark Tale' was screened before Saturday. 7. Four of the following live are similar on the basis of

their position in the above arrangement and hence form a group. Which of the following does not belong to the group? (a) Up ‐ Beauty and the Beast (b) The Incredibles – Aladdin (c) Shark Tale ‐ Finding Nemo (d) Beauty and the Beast ‐ The Incerdibles (e) Finding Nemo ‐ Aladdin

8. On which day was 'Ice Age' screened? (a) Friday (b) Tuesday (c) Thursday (d) Sunday (e) None of these

9. Which movie was screened on Saturday? (a) Finding Nemo (b) Up (c) The Incredibles (d) Aladdin (e) None of these

10. How many movies were screened before 'Shark Tale'? (a) 6 (b) 4 (c) 2 (d) 3 (e) None of these

Direction (Q.11‐13) : Study the following information to answer the given questions : In a certain code 'colours of the sky' is written as 'ki la fa so', 'rainbow colours' is written as 'ro ki' and 'sky high rocket' is written as 'la pe jo' and 'the rocket world' is written as 'pe so ne'. 11. Which of the following is the code for 'colours sky

high'? (a) ro jo la (b) fa la jo (c) la ki so (d) ki jo la (e) fa ki jo

12. Which of the following will/may represent 'the'? (a) Only ‘fa’ (b) Either ‘fa' or 'la' (c) Only 'so' (d) Only ‘la' (e) Either 'so' or 'fa'

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13. What does 'pe' represent in the code? (a) colours (b) sky (c) high (d) rainbow (e) rocket

Directions (Q.14) : Study the following information carefully and answer the given questions : A word and number arrangement machine when given an input line of words and numbers rearranges them following a particular rul(e) The following is an illustration of input and rearrangement. (Single digit numbers are preceded by a zero. All other numbers are two digit numbers). Input : are 74 82 we 02 10 saving 56 our own 43 lives. Step I : we are 74 02 10 saving 56 our own 43 lives 82. Step II : we saving are 02 10 56 our own 43 lives 74 82. Step III : we saving own are 02 10 our 43 lives 56 74 82. Step IV : we saving own our are 02 10 lives 43 56 74 82. Step V : we saving own our lives are 02 10 43 56 74 82. Step V is the last step of the arrangement of the above input as the intended arrangement is obtaine(d) 14. Which of the following would be step IV for the

following input? Input : 19 there is 81 27 hope 45 for 33 one 49 better day 08. (a) 19 there is 81 27 hope 45 for 33 one 49 better day

08. (b) there one is hope for 19 27 for better day 08 33 45

49 81. (c) there one is hope 19 27 for better day 81 49 45 33

08. (d) there one is hope for 19 27 better day 08 33 49 45

81. (e) there is one hope 19 27 for better day 08 33 49 45

81. Directions (Q.15‐16) : The following are the steps I, II, III, IV and V of an input represented by A, B, C, D and E but not necessarily in this order. Rearrange them in the order of the steps and then answer the given questions. Input : abide the 11 32 laws 50 93 17 of countless 21 natur(e)

(A) the of nature abide 11 laws 17 countless 21 32 50 93.

(B) the of nature laws abide 11 countless 17 21 32 50 93.

(C) the abide 11 32 laws 50 17 of countless 2 1 nature 93.

(D) the of nature laws countless abide 11 17 21 32 50 93.

(E) the of abide 11 32 laws 17 countless 2 1 nature 50 93.

15. Which of the following will be step II?

(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D (e) E

16. Which of the following will be step IV? (a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D (e) E

Directions (Q.17‐20) : In these questions, relationships between different elements is shown in the statements. These statements are followed by two conclusions. Mark answer If (a) Only conclusion I follows. (b) Only conclusion II follows. (c) Either conclusion I or II follows. (d) Neither conclusion I nor II follows. (e) Both conclusions I and II follow. 17. Statement :

W ≥ D < M < P < A = F Conclusions : I. F > D II. P < W

18. Statement : H ≥ M > F < A = B > S Conclusions : I. H > B II. F < S

19. Statement : B > T > Q > R = F Conclusions : I. Q ≥ F II. T > F

20. Statement : S = R ≥ Q, P < Q Conclusions : I. S ≥ P II. R > P

Directions (Q.21‐23) : Below in each question are given two statements (A) and (B). These statements may be either independent causes or may be effects of independent causes or a common cause. One of these statements may be the effect of the other statement. Read both the statements and decide which of the following answer‐choice correctly depicts the relationship between these two statements. Mark answer (a) if statement (A) is the cause and statement (b) is its effect. Mark answer (b) if statement (B) is the cause and statement (A) is its effect.

62



Mark answer (c) if both the statements (A) and (B) are independent causes. Mark answer (d) if both the statements (A) and (B) are effects of independent causes. Mark answer (e) if both the statements (A) and (B) are effects of some common cause.

21. (A) Asthma cases in the city are on a continuous rise since last year. (B)The number of commonly found animals such as sparrows, squirrels and pigeons in the city has continuously dwindled since last year.

22. (A) Prices of food grains in India has increased substantially. (B) Lakhs of fanners have quit farming owing to the lack of governmental support in the form of subsidies.

23. (A) The university decided postpone the final exams for course X by a month. (B) Nearly twenty five students out of sixty students course X failed to pass the final exams last year.

Directions (Q.24‐30) : Study the following information carefully and answer the given questions. Eight friends, P, Q, R. S, T, V, W and Y are sitting around a square table in such a way that lour of them sit at four corners of the square while four sit in the middle of each of the four sides. The ones who sit at the four corners face the centre while those who sit in the middle of the sides face outside. S sits third to the right of P. P laces the centre Y is not an immediate neighbour of P or S. T sits third to the right of R. R does not sit in the middle of any of the sides and also R is not an immediate neighbour of Y. Only one person sits between P and V. Q is not an immediate neighbour of V.

24. If all the persons are made to sit in alphabetical order in clockwise direction, starting from P, the positions of how many (excluding P) will remain unchanged as compared their original seating potions? (a) None (b) One (c) Two (d) Three (e) Four

25. Which of the following is true regarding Y? (a) T is not an immediate neighbour of Y (b) Y sits in the middle of one of the sides (c) R sits second to left of Y (d) P and V are immediate neighbours of Y (e) None is true

26. Who amongst the following sits fourth to the left of V? (a) Y (b) R (c) T (d) Q (e) W

27. What is the position of Q with respect to R? (a) Immediately to the left (b) Second to the left (c) Third to the left (d) Third to the right (e) Immediately to the right

28. Four of the following five are alike in a certain way and so form a group. Which is the one that does not belong to that group? (a) T (b) W (c) V (d) S (e) Q

29. Who sits third to the right of W? (a) R (b) S (c) Q (d) Y (e) Cannot be determined

30. How many people sit between T and Q? (a) None (b) One (c) Two (d) Three (e) Four

QUANTITATIVE APTITUDE

Directions (Q.31‐35) : What will come in place of the question mark (?) the following number series? 31. 9 15 27 51 99 ?

(a) 165 (b) 195 (c) 180 (d) 190 (e) None of these

32. 13 21 36 58 87 ? (a) 122 (b) 128 (c) 133 (d) 123 (e) None of these




Directions (Q.36‐40) : Each of the questions below consists of a question and two statements numbered I and II given below it. You have to decide whether the data provided in

63



the statements are sufficient to answer the question. Read both the statements and Give answer (a) if the data in Statement I alone are sufficient to answer the question, while the data in Statement II alone are not sufficient to answer the question. Give answer (b) if the data in Statement II alone are sufficient to answer the question, while the data in Statement I alone are not sufficient to answer the question. Give answer (c) if the data in Statement I alone or in Statement II alone are sufficient to answer the question. Give answer (d) if the data in both the Statements I and II are not sufficient to answer the question. Give answer (e) if the data in both the Statements I and II together are necessary to answer the question. 36. What is the area of the circle?

I. The breadth of a rectangle is three‐fourth of the radius of the circle

II. The radius of the circle is equal to the side of a square of area 144 sq. cm.

37. What is the cost of three tables and two chairs? I. Cost of four chairs is twice the cost of three tables. II. Cost of two tables is equal to cost of one cot, i.e.

Rs. 500? 38. What is Jyoti's annual income?

I. Jyoti's monthly income is Rs. 8,500 more than Amit's monthly income

II. Rohit's monthly income is Rs. 3.5 thousand which is half of Amit's monthly income

39. What will be Suraj's age after eight years? I. The ratio between Kamya's and Suraj's present age

is 4 : 7 respectively. II. Kamya is 15 years younger than Suraj.

40. What is the minimum passing percentage in a test? I. Raju scored 162 marks in a test and failed by 104

marks. II. The maximum marks of the test are 538 more

marks obtained by Raju. Directions (Q.41‐45) : Study the following information carefully and answer the questions that follow : A company produces four different products, viz., Mobile phones, Televisions, Refrigerators and Computers. Each of the products has two categories, viz., Category‐A and Category‐B The total number of all the products is 900. Twenty five percent of the total number of products is Computers and one‐third of the total number of products is Televisions. Thirty two per cent of the total products are Refrigerators. Fifty per cent of each of the total number of Televisions as well as the total number of refrigerators is of

category‐A. Forty per cent of the total number of Computers is of category‐B. One‐third of the total number of mobile phones is of category‐B. 41. What is the total number of Televisions of Category‐A,

Refrigerators of Category‐B and Mobile phones of Category‐B together? (a) 225 (b) 323 (c) 325 (d) 223 (e) None of these

42. Number of Computers of Category‐B is approximately what per cent of the total number of refrigerators? (a) 29 (b) 31 (c) 37 (d) 43 (e) 47

43. What is the average number of products of Category‐A together? (a) 110.25 (b) 115.5 (c) 121.75 (d) 102 (e) 106

44. What is the respective ratio between the number of televisions of Category B and the number of computers of Category A? (a) 3 : 5 (b) 5 : 3 (c) 10:9 (d) 5:6 (e) None of these

45. What is the difference between the number of mobile phones of Category‐B and the total number of Computers? (a) 146 (b) 176 (c) 167 (d) 156 (e) None of these

46. A car covers a distance of 540 km in 9 hours. Speed of a train is double the speed of the car. Two‐third of the speed of the train is equal of a bike. How much distance will the bike cover in 5 hours? (a) 450 km (b) 360 km (c) 400 km (d) 500 km (e) None of these

47. The ratio between the angles of a quadrilateral is 3 : 4 : 6 : 5. Two‐third of the largest angle of 'the quadrilateral is equal to the smaller angle of a parallelogram. What is the value of adjacent angle of the parallelogram? (a) 1200 (2) 1100 (c) 1000 (d) 1300 (e) None of these

48. What profit/loss per cent did Ravi earn if he purchased an item of Rs. 5,600 and sold it at three‐fourth of its cost price? (a) Loss of 20 per cent (b) Gain of 25 per cent

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(c) Neither gain nor loss (d) Loss of 15 per cent (e) None of these

49. The simple interest accrued on a sum of certain principal is Rs. 1,200 in four years at the rate of 8 p.c.p.a What would be the simple interest accrued on thrice of that principal at the rate of 6 p.c.p.a in 3 years? (a) Rs. 2,025 (b) Rs. 3.025 (c) Rs. 2,250 (d) Rs. 2,150 (e) None of these

50. The area of a square is 196 sq. cm. whose side is half the radius of a circle The circumference of the circle is equal to breadth of a rectangle If perimeter of the rectangle is 712 cm, what is the length of the rectangle? (a) 196cm (b) 186cm (c) 180cm (d) 190 cm (e) None of these

Directions (Q.51‐55) : Study the following table carefully to answer the questions that follow :

Number of Soldiers (in thousands) retired during six different years academics

Years Air force

Army Navy Coast guard

BSF

2004 2.5 5.2 1.6 0.6 4.2 2005 3.7 6.1 1.9 1.8 5.1 2006 2.9 6.9 2.4 1.2 3.7 2007 5.4 7.2 2.8 2.7 5.2 2008 4.2 6.4 1.5 5.4 4.4 2009 5.6 8.4 3.5 3.6 6.3 51. What is the difference between the total number of

soldiers retired from Air force in the year 2006, 2007 and 2008 and the number of Soldiers retired from Army in the year 2009? (a) 4,700 (b) 4,100 (c) 3,600 (d) 36,000 (e) None of these

52. Total number of Soldiers retired from BSF in the years 2005 and 2006 together was approximately what percent of the total number of Soldiers retired from Navy over all the years together? (a) 70 (b) 54 (c) 64 (d) 75 (e) 80

53. What was the average number of Soldiers retired together in the year 2007? (a) 4,660 (b) 46,600 (c) 23,300 (d) 2,330 (e) None of these

54. In which force the number of the soldiers retired continuously increased from the year 2004 to 2009? (a) Air force (b) Army and BSF only (c) Coast Guard (d) Navy only (e) None of these

55. What was the respective ratio between the number of soldiers retired from Army in the year 2004 and number of soldiers retired from Coast guard in the year 2006? (a) 13 : 4 (b) 13 : 6 (c) 3 : 26 (d) 26 : 3 (e) None of these

Directions (Q.56‐60) : Study the following Pie‐chart carefully to answer the questions that follow: Percentagewise Distribution of teachers who teach six

different subjects Total number of Teachers = 2000

Percentage of Teachers

56. If five‐seventh of the teachers who teach Mathematics

are female, then number of male Mathematics teachers is approximately what percentage of the total number of teachers who teach English? (a) 57 (b) 42 (c) 63 (d) 69 (e) 51

57. What is the difference between the total number of teachers who teach English and History together and the total number of teachers who teach Mathematics and Biology together? (a) 146 (b) 156 (c) 180 (d) 160 (e) None of these

58. If the percentage of Biology teachers is increased by 40 percent and percentage of History teachers decreased by 20 percent then what will be the total number of Biology and History teachers together? (a) 634 (b) 654 (c) 658 (d) 778 (e) None of these

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59. What is the approximate average number of teachers teaching Economics, History and Biology together? (a) 400 (b) 420 (c) 450 (d) 480 (e) 470

60. What is the respective ratio of the number of teachers who teach Biology and the number of teachers who teach Physics? (a) 6 : 7 (b) 4 : 7 (c) 3 : 5 (d) 4 : 5 (e) None of these

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Directions (Q.61‐66) : Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. Certain words have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions. It is being projected as a boon for the agricultural sector. In reality, it will be the beginning of the end for Indian farmers. It has happened in the west. Ever since big retail ‐ dominated by multi‐brand retailers has entered the market, farmers have disappeared and poverty has increased Today, not more than seven lakh farmers remain on the farms in the west. According, to a report, every minute one farmer quits agriculture Farmers' incomes have come down by more than forty per cent. These days low supermarket prices are being cited as the reason for the exodus of dairy farmers too. It is therefore futile to expect the supermarkets rescuing farmers in India Despite the destruction of farming globally, administrators in India are gung‐ho about allowing foreign direct investment in multi‐brand retailing. "The agriculture sector needs well functioning markets to drive growth, employment and economic prosperity in rural areas," says a discussion paper. Since 2006, India has allowed a partial opening up of the retail sector. Have these retail units benefited Indian farmers and the consumers? The answer is no. The argument for setting up of big retail chains is that the supermarket chains will squeeze out the middlemen thereby providing higher prices to farmers and at the same time provide large investments for the development of post‐harvest infrastructure. All these claims are untrue, and big retail has not helped farmers anywhere in the world. If the supermarkets were so efficient, why is the west providing a massive subsidy for agriculture. After all, the world's biggest retail giants are based in the west and it should have helped their farmers become economically viable. But it did not happen. Till 1950, a farmer who would receive about seventy per cent of what was spent on food

receives no more than, 3 to 4 percent today. And that is why the farmers there are being supported in the form of direct income support by the government. A report by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a group, comprising the richest 30 countries in the world, states explicitly that farm subsidies rose by 22 per cent in 2009, up from 21 per cent in 2008. In just 2009, industrialised countries provided a subsidy of Rs. 1,260 billion. And it is primarily for this reason that farm incomes are lucrative. Take the Netherlands: the average farm family income is 275 percent of the average household income. This is because of farm subsidies, not supermarkets. India is therefore Importing a failed model from the west especially when India is incapable of providing such heavy subsidies to its farmers. Regarding employment, big retail does not squeeze out middlemen from the food chain. Supermarkets claim that they remove middlemen and therefore are able to provide a higher price to farmers. In reality, what happens is the opposite. Supermarkets are themselves the big middlemen. They replace the small fish. Supermarkets replace the plethora of small middlemen. The muneem clad in a dhoti‐kurta is replaced by a smartly dressed up middleman. So while the farmer pauperises, the profit of supermarkets multiply. Based on biased studies by consultancy firms and some institutes, it is believed that supermarkets will create employment and therefore help in ameliorating poverty. This is a flawed assumption. Lessons need to be drawn from a 2004 study done at Pennsylvania State (University. The authors measured the Impact of a retail boom on poverty in various adjoining states. The comprehensive study clearly brings out that those American states that had more retail stores in 1987, had higher poverty rates by 1999 than the states where fewer stores were set up. At stake is the livelihood security of 120 lakh small shopkeepers, 4 crore hawkers and at least 20 crore (of the 60 crore) small farmers. What is needed is more public sector investment in setting up a chain of mandis across the country. Providing "an assured market and reasonable procurement price is what Indian farmers need. This has to be supplemented by a network of food grain banks at panchayat level that assure local production and distribution. 61. Why does the author disagree with the idea that big

retail stores can salvage farmers" condition in India? (a) The farmers in India still prefer to sell their

produce to local middlemen and mandis than to the big retail stores.

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(b) There have been examples throughout the world that the big retail chains further deteriorate the condition of the farmers.

(c) Big retail chains buy the farmers produce at a much lower cost as compared to the present middlemen.

(d) The government subsidies to the farmers selling their produce directly to big retail stores is far lesser than the ones who sell their produce to the government itself

(e) Selling the produce to small shopkeepers and hawkers saves the farmers of the expenses involved in selling it to big retail stores which are mostly based in big cities.

62. Complete the following sentence by selecting the alternative which is most appropriate in the context of the passage. Although it was assumed that retail chain giants would squeeze out middlemen from the farming sector, _____ (a) the retail chain giants helped the farmers get sub‐

sidles from the government. (b) India is still contemplating allowing foreign direct

investment in multi‐brand retailing. (c) the retail chain giants themselves proved to be a

rambling version of the smaller middlemen. (d) the government was more concerned about the

welfare of the farmers. (e) None of these

63. Which of the following is true in context of the passage? (a) Noticing the state of farmers in the west owing to

the advent of retail giants, Indian administrators are not too keen to allow multi brand retailing in India

(b) Supermarket chains have provided large investments for the development of post‐harvest infrastructure

(c) These days, farmers in the west earn several times more than their earnings half a century ago.

(d) India is providing heavy subsidies to cover up the losses made by the farmers because of retail chain giants.

(e) None is true 64. The fact that the west provides enormous subsidies to

its farmers proves that __ (a) the government in the west lures the, farmers into

selling their produce to retail chain giants in return of such subsidies.

(b) many farmers who had given up farming as a profession are now returning to it.

(c) supermarkets have indeed helped in making farming lucrative business.

(d) the retail chains are arm twisting the government to provide subsidies to the farmers who see their produce to them.

(e) the retail chains have failed to benefit the farmers thus forcing the government to come to their rescue

65. Which of the following have been the arguments for setting up big retail stores in India? (A) The retail chains would sell the farmers produce at

a comparatively higher price than the smaller shops so as to improve the farmers' profit.

(B) The retail chains would drive the middlemen out of the system, thus improving farmers' profit margin.

(C) Big retail chains in the west have been taking strides of growth and have been benefiting the farmers.

(D) The big retail chains would provide an organized market which would bring about growth in the rural areas

(a) Only (A) and (C) (b) Only (C) and (D) (c) Only (A), (C) and (D) (d) Only (B) and (D) (e) All (A), (B), (C) and (D)

66. The author of the given passage definitely (a) is indicating that the west has completely failed to

make agriculture a lucrative sector. (b) is against the argument that retail chain giants can

help come to the rescue of farmers in India (c) is not in favour of removing the local middlemen as

they provide a higher price to the farmers. (d) is suggesting that the Indian government must

increase farm subsidies emulating some of the western countries.

(e) is comparing the‐successful performance of retail chains in India as opposed to those in the west.

Directions (Q.67‐68) : Choose the word/group of words which is most similar in meaning to the word printed in bold as used in the passage. 67. BRINGS OUT

(a) Exits (b) Encourages (c) Dismisses (d) Criticises (e) Reveals

68. DRIVE (a) Transfer (b) Move (c) Compel (d) Force (e) Stimulate

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Directions (Q.69‐70) : Choose the word/phrase which is most opposite in meaning to the word printed in bold as used in the passage. 69. MULTIPLY

(a) Reduce (b) Divide (c) Step‐down (d) Converge (e) Add

70. FAILED (a) Passed (b) Prominent (c) Successful (d) Privileged (e) Fortunate

Directions (Q.71‐75) : Read each sentence to find out whether there is any grammatical error in it. The error if any will be in one part of the sentence, the number of that part will be the answer. If there is no error, mark (e) as the answer. (Ignore errors of punctuation, if any).

71. The right to adequate food (a)/ and clean drinking water (b)/ should be regarded as a (c)/ basic right of all citizen of India. (d)/ No error (e)

72. A sharp fall in (a)/ International prices of tea (b)/ have lead Tea plantation workers (c)/ in Kerala to face starvation. (d)/ No error. (e)

73. Inspite freedom of the press is vital to democracy, (a)/ the thin line between reporting facts (b)/ and expressing opinions on them (c)/ is being increasingly crossed. (d)/ No error (e)

74. In India, the teacher has been elevated (a)/ to a position of power (b)/ and a part of that power has been (c)/ to assuming the right to punish the students. (d)/ No error (e)

75. In the flying game, there are a host of (a)/ new low‐cost air lines that dare to roar, (b)/ providing a glimmer of hope of (c)/ more cheaper air transport to millions. (d)/ No error (e)

Directions (Q.76‐80) : Which of the phrases (a), (b), (c) and (d) given below each statement should replace the phrase printed in bold in the sentence to make it. grammatically correct ? If the sentence is correct as it is given and no correction is required, mark (e) as the answer.

76. MBA is the acme of a student's dreams, but as a post‐graduate qualification it has been so distorted in its execution so as to lose nearly all the original Intent. (a) that it has lost nearly (b) to lose almost (c) so as to lost nearly (d) and has lost nearly

(e) No correction required 77. British conservationists, which were in Mumbai on

March, have appealed to their Indian counterparts to make a case for preserving the city's derelict‐cotton mills. (a) which were at Mumbai on (b) who was in Mumbai at (c) which were on Mumbai on (d) who were in Mumbai in (e) No correction required

78. This drought, in the fifth consecutive years, must be used as an opportunity to affect changes in practices for the management of our water resources where every community and household is involved (a) on the five consecutive years (b) in fifth consecutive year (c) for the fifth consecutive year (d) in five consecutive years (e) No correction required

79. Medical tourism will not make any difference to Indian healthcare despite it will mean more great profits for private hospitals but will not create subsidised treatment for Indians. (a) however it will result greater (b) because it will mean more great (c) as it will mean greater (d) also it will mean more greater (e) No correction required

80. With western fast food and brand name sodas gaining foothold, India is incubating a new public health crisis being forced to choose between eradicating hunger and treating those who are overweight. (a) forced to treat between (b) forcibly choosing between (c) forced to choose for (d) forcing to treat between (e) No correction required

Directions (Q.81‐85) : Rearrange the following sentences (A), (B), (C), (D), (E) and (F) to make a meaningful paragraph and then answer the questions which follow :

(A) Increased competition, globalisation and the need for enormous resources have nudged priorities which once held the fort.

(B) In order to achieve these, hype and sensationalism is put in to spice up the news which have robbed news stories of credibility.

(C) This is only possible if a lot more thought is put into the gathering and presentation of the daily news and delivering it much more sensitively to its receivers/users.

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(D) Technological innovation and economic change have transformed the news industry to the extent where its original definition as a public service no longer holds good

(E) In order to win it back, media should make use of the tremendous power that the democracy blesses it with.

(F) These included public good and social responsibility. But sadly, today, these have made way for a business target of commercial viability and a chase of viewership.

81. Which of the following sentences should be the SIXTH

(LAST) after rearrangement? (a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D (e) F

82. Which of the following sentences should be the THIRD after rearrangement? (a) A (b) E (c) D (d) F (e) C

83. Which of the following sentences should be the FIFTH after rearrangement? (a) A (b) B (c) E (d) C (e) F

84. Which of the following sentences should be the FIRST after rearrangement? (a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D (e) E

85. Which of the following sentences should be the SECOND after rearrangement? (a) A (b) B (c) D (d) E (e) F

Directions (Q.86‐95) : In the following passage there are blanks, each of which has been numbere(d) These numbers are printed below the passage and against each, five words/phrases are suggested, one of which fits the blank appropriately. Find out the appropriate word/phrase in each case. One big (86) between the investments in fossil fuels and those in wind power, solar cells, and geothermal energy is that the latter will supply energy in (87). These "wells" will never run dry. If the money spent on oil in one year were (88) in wind turbines, the electricity generated would be enough to (89) one‐fifth of the world's needs.

Investments in infrastructure for the new energy economy, which would eventually have to be made when fossil fuels reserves (90), will obviously be huge. These include the transmission lines that (91) wind farms with electricity consumers, and the pipelines that link hydrogen supply sources with end‐users. To a substantial degree, the infrastructure for the (92) energy sources ‐the transmission lines for electricity from coal and the pipelines for natural gas can be used in the new energy economy as well. The local pipeline distribution network in various cities for natural gas can easily be (93) to hydrogen distribution system. For developing countries, the new energy sources (94) to reduce dependence on imported oil, freeing up capital for investment in domestic energy sources. (95) very few countries have their own oil fields, most have wind and solar energy. In terms of economic expansion and job generation, these new energy technologies are a godsend. 86. (a) argument (b) change

(c) exception (d) issue (e) difference

87. (a) infinity (b) perpetuity (c) extension (d) reality (e) renewability

88. (a) dissipated (b) applied (c) drawn (d) invested (e) given

89. (a) involve (b) meet (c) attract (d) complete (e) cater

90. (a) deplete (b) expand (c) terminate (d) sustain (e) cease

91. (a) provide (b) include (c) connect (d) support (e) links

92. (a) existing (b) new (c) latest (d) old (e) renewable

93. (a) supplied (b) dispersed (c) provided (d) converted (e) used

94. (a) predict (b) promise (c) pursue (d) expects (e) created

95. (a) Despite (b) As (c) Owing to (d) Unless (e) Although

Directions (Q.96‐100) : Each question below has two blanks, each blank indicating that something has been omitted.

69



Choose the set of words/phrases for each blank that best fits the meaning of die sentence as a whole. 96. ____ is China the world's most populous country, with

nearly 1.3 billion people, it is also the world's fastest‐growing economy, ___ more than fourfold every year. (a) Not only – expanding (b) Merely – developing (c) Hardly – growing (d) Surprisingly – flourishing (e) An example ‐ evolving

97. Bangalore has ___ beyond recognition into an IT ‐propelled metropolis from a laidback city that it ___. (a) changed – is (b) developed ‐ should be (c) constructed ‐ used to be (d) progressed ‐ claims to be (e) morphed ‐ once was

98. While the agricultural revolution ___ the earth's surface, the Industrial Revolution is changing the earth's ___ . (a) changed ‐ as well (b) suffered – air (c) benefited – condition (d) transformed – atmosphere (e) predicted ‐ circumstances

99. The findings of a recent study to ____ the factors which influence successful primary school completion ___ that extreme poverty is responsible for ninety percent of the school dropout cases. (a) study‐ proves (b) establish – examine (c) construct – show (d) explore – reveal (e) reveal ‐ object to

100. ___ the concept of environmentally sustainable development ____ a quarter‐century ago, there is not a single country today which has a strategy to build an eco‐economy. (a) Eventhough – built (b) Although – evolved (c) Besides ‐ took shape (d) After – still (e) Though – created

COMPUTER KNOWLEDGE

101. Which of the following is not true about computer files? (a) They are collections of data saved to a storage

medium (b) Every file has a filename

(c) A file extension is established by the user to indicate the computer on which it was created

(d) All files contain data (e) None of these

102. Which of the following is not an example of hardware? (a) WORD (b) Printer (c) Monitor (d) Mouse (e) Scanner

103. Which of the following is a secondary memory device? (a) Keyboard (b) Disk (c) ALU (d) Mouse (e) Printer

104. The result of a formula in a cell is the (a) label (b) value (c) range (d) displayed value (e) None of these

105. Which of the following is not a storage medium? (a) Hard disk (b) Flash drive (c) DVD (d) CD (e) Monitor

106. Choose the odd one out (a) Micro computer (b) Mini computer (c) Super computer (d) Notebook computer (e) Digital computer

107. The ALU performs ______ operations (a) Logic (b) ASCII (c) Algorithm‐based (d) Logarithm‐based (e) Final operations

108. ______ is the part of the computer that does not arithmetical calculations (a) OS (b) ALU (c) CPU (d) Memory (e) Printer

109. In a sequence of events that takes place in an instruction cycle, the first cycle is (a) Store cycle (b) Execute cycle (c) Fetch cycle (d) Decode cycle (e) Code cycle

110. Peripheral devices such as printers and plotters are considered to be (a) hardware (b) software (c) data (d) information (e) None of these

111. Which of the following Excel charts represents only one value for each variable? (a) function (b) line (c) pie (d) bar (e) None of these

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112. To see the document before the printout is taken, use (a) Insert Table (b) Paste (c) Format Painter (d) Cut (e) Print Preview

113. ALU works on the instructions and data held in the (a) Notebook (b) Registers (c) Copy Pad (d) I/O devices (e) None of these

114. To move data from one part of the document to another, following is used (a) Cut and Paste (b) Copy and Paste (c) Cut and Delete (d) Copy and Undo (e) Cut and Insert

115. Another name for a pre‐programmed formula in Excel is (a) range (b) graph (c) function (d) cell (e) None of these

116. To save a document for the first time, ___ option is used (a) Save as (b) Save first (c) Save on (d) Copy (e) Paste

117. What is a device that can change images into codes for the computer? (a) mouse (b) printer (c) joystick (d) keyboard (e) scanner

118. Two basic types of graphics used in Word 2000 are (a) Autoshapes and ClipArt (b) Header and Footer (c) Drawing Objects and Pictures (d) Spelling and Grammar (e) Word Count

119. User can use _______ commands to search for and correct words in a document. (a) Print and Print Preview (b) Header and Footer (c) Find and Replace (d) Spelling and Grammar (e) Copy and Paste

120. What is the advantage of using basic HTML to create a document? (a) HTML is very easy to use (b) The document can be displayed by all word

processors (c) The document can be displayed by all programs (d) The document can be displayed by all browsers (e) None of these

121. Which of the following functions is not performed by the CPU?

(a) Graphical Display of Data (b) Arithmetic Calculations (c) Managing Memory (d) Managing Input and Output (e) None of these

122. The feature that keeps track of the right margin is (a) find and replace (b) word wrap (c) right justified (d) left justified (e) ragged right

123. Keyboard shortcuts are used to move the (a) I‐beam (b) insertion point (c) scroll bar (d) mouse (e) None of these

124. To specify margins in Word, the user has to select Page Setup option from the _____menu. (a) Edit (b) Table (c) Autocorrect (d) File (e) Format

125. What is the name of the package which helps to create, manipulate and analyse data arranged in rows and columns? (a) Application package (b) Word processing package (c) Outlining package (d) Outline processors (e) Spreadsheet package

126. What does an electronic spreadsheet consist of? (a) Rows (b) Columns (c) Cells (d) All of these (e) None of these

127. ROM is an example of which of the following? (a) volatile memory (b) cache memory (c) non‐volatile memory (d) virtual memory (e) None of these

128. Which of the following options is used to display information such as title, page number of the document? (a) Insert Table (b) Auto correct (c) Thesaurus (d) Spelling and Grammar (e) Header and Footer

129. Which part of the computer can display the user's work? (a) Mouse (b) Keyboard (c) Disk Drive (d) Monitor (e) None of these

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130. When a computer prints a report, this output is called (a) Program (b) Soft copy (c) Hard copy (d) Execution (e) None of these

GENERAL AWARENESS 131. With which one of the following sports is Fernando

Alanso associated? (a) Motor Racing (b) Billiards (c) Snooker (d) Tennis (e) Football

132. In which one of the following States is a mega dam on Subansiri river proposed to be constructed? (a) J & K (b) HP (c) Meghalaya (d) Assam (e) Arunachal Pradesh

133. With which one of the following games is Pankaj Advani associated? (a) Cycling (b) Shooting (c) Swimming (d) Triathlon (e) Billiards

134. Who was the first lady Prime Minister of the World? (a) Srimao Bhandarnaike (b) Margaret Thatcher (c) Indira Gandhi (d) Golda Meir (e) None of these

135. Which one of the following is the first country in Asia to win its 1000 gold medals in Asian Games? (a) China (b) Japan (c) South Korea (d) North Korea (e) Indonesia

136. Which, one of the following is the indices of Taiwan Stock Exchange? (a) Kospi Composite (b) Nikkei (c) Heng Seng (d) Straits times (e) SSE Composite

137. At which one of the following places in India, the Australian Company Oilex has struck huge natural gas reserves? (a) Ahmedabad (b) Cambay (c) Barmar (d) Reva (e) Coimbatore

138. In which one of the following countries is the life expectancy at birth (in number of years) the highest? (a) India (b) China (c) Pakistan (d) Sri Lanka (e) Bangladesh

139. Who is Montek Singh Ahluwalia? (a) Secretary Finance, Govt. of India

(b) Chairman, Planning Commission (c) Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission (d) Revenue Secretary, Govt. of India (e) Member, Minority Commission

140. The word 'carbon credit' is related to (a) construction industry (b) carbon production (c) medical science (d) IT industry (e) None of these

141. What does 'Gold Standard' mean? (a) It is a system, where me total currency is backed by

gold reserves (b) It is a system where the purity of gold is

standardized (c) It is a system where the value of ornaments is

standardized (d) It is a system, on the basis of which IMF quota of

member countries is decided (e) None of these

142. Expand the term IFRS __ (a) Indian Financial Review Standards (b) Indian Financial Reporting Standards (c) International Financial Review Standards (d) International Financial Reporting Standards (e) None of these

143. Wing commander is a post related to (a) Navy (b) Army (c) Police (d) Air force (e) BSF

144. What is a Corporate Hedging? (a) It is a mechanism to protect firm's exposure to

equity risk (b) It is a mechanism to protect firm's exposure to

market risk (c) It is a mechanism to protect firm's exposure to

forex risk (d) It is a mechanism to protect firm's exposure in

international trade (e) None of these

145. India is following a system of "fiat money", while issuing currency. What is 'fiat money'? (a) The currency is backed by Government Guarantee (b) The currency is backed by tangible assets (c) The currency is backed by fold reserves (d) The currency is backed by budgetary support (e) None of these

146. While assessing the performance of core industries, which one of the following industries has highest percent risk weights? (a) Crude oil (b) Coal

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(c) Electricity (d) Cement (e) Finished steel

147. The direct consequences of Tsunami are 1. loss of livelihood to fishermen 2. unknown damages to coral reefs 3. adverse impact on coastal tree plantations 4. impact of salineation on soil fertility 5. earthquakes (a) (1), (2), & (3) (b) (2), (3) & (4) (c) (3), (4) & (1) (d) (1), (2), (3), (4) & (5) (e) (1), (2), (3), & (4)

148. Members of SAARC countries does not include (a) Pakistan (b) Japan (c) Nepal (d) India (e) Bangladesh

149. The magnitude of earthquake waves is measured on (a) wave scale (b) Richter's scale (c) Medic scale (d) full bright scale (e) None of these

150. Green Revolution relates to (a) production through pollution free methods (b) significant increase in agricultural productivity

through high yield seeds et(c) (c) educating the citizens for clean and green cities (d) high milk production (e) None of these

151. CAG is connected with (a) union budgets (b) state finances and irregularities (c) audit and related matters (d) checking expenditure of Government of India (e) None of these

152. Medical tourism is related to (a) cancer patients undertaking tours and travels (b) all patients going on a vacation (c) a tourist spot having primary health care facilities (d) a package covering travel, stay, medical/treatment

and the like (e) a holiday package for people suffering from

communicable diseases 153. Lunar Eclipse

(1) occurs only on a full moon day (2) is when earth comes between Sun and Moon (3) is when Moon comes between Sun and Earth (4) occurs on a new moon day (5) occurs every 15 days in different parts of the

worl(d) (a) (1) and (2) (b) (2) and (3) (c) (3) and (4) (d) (4) and (5) (e) (5) and (1)

154. One of the following states is famous for sandal wood oil, soaps et(c) (a) Tamil Nadu (b) Kerala (c) Andhra Pradesh (d) Goa (e) Karnataka

155. The book "Discovery of India" was written by (a) Dr. Ambedkar (b) Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (c) M.K. Gandhi (d) Dadabhai Navroji (e) None of these

156. The word sovereign in the context of 'Sovereign Republic" means (a) no concentration of power and money (b) no regional disparity (c) no partiality against any religion (d) no room for a monarch (e) freedom to follow internal and external policies

157. ‘Mohiniattam’ is a traditional art form of (a) Andhra Pradesh (b) Karnataka (c) Kerala (d) Tamil Nadu (e) None of these

158. What is the shape of the earth’s orbit around the Sun? (a) Circular (b) Hyperbolic (c) Elliptical (d) Parabolic (e) None of these

159. Lines joining places of equal temperature are called (a) Isotherms (b) Isohytes (c) Isomers (d) Isobars (e) None of these

160. Who is known as the ‘Father of Geometry’? (a) Kepler (b) Euclid (c) Pythagoras (d) Newton (e) None of these

♦♦♦♦

73



Answer Key of Practice Set 1. (c)

Here except (c) all the games can played in group. 2. (c) 3. (d) 4. (a)

5. (a) 6. (c)

H A B I T V A L G B A H S V B K

7 – 10. MON – UP TUE – Ice Age WED – Beauty & Beast THU – Short tell FRI – The incredible SAT – Finding nemo SUN – Alladin

7. (e) 8. (b) 9. (a) 10. (d) 11. (d) 12. (c) 13. (e) 14. (b)

Input : 19 there is 81 27 hope 45 for 33 one 49 better day 08 Step I : there 19 is 27 hope 45 for 33 one 49 better day 08 81 Step II : there one 19 is 27 hope 45 for 33 better day 08 49 81 Step III : there one is 19 27 hope for 33 better day 08 45 49 81 Step IV : there one is hope 19 27 for better day 08 33 45 49 81

15. (e) Input : abide the 11 32 laws 50 93 17 of countless 21 nature Step I : the abide 11 32 laws 50 17 of countless 21 nature 93 Step II : the of abide 11 32 laws 17 countless 21 nature 50 93 Step III : the of nature abide 11 laws 17 countless 21 32 50 93 Step IV : the of nature law abide 11 countless 17 21 32 50 93 Step V : the of nature law countless abide 11 17 21 32 50 93

16. (b) 17. (a) 18. (d) 19. (b) 20. (b) 21. (d) 22. (b) 23. (d) 24 – 30

24. (b) 25. (c) 26. (a) 27. (e) 28. (c) 29. (d) 30. (b) 31. (c)

32. (d)

33. (d)

34. (a)

35. (c)

36. (b)

6

9 15

12

27

24

51

48

99

96

197

A

B F

C

E D 12m

8m 24m

12m

Y

Q

P

V

W

T

S R

13

8 15

21

22

36

29

58

36

87 123

7 7 7 7

7

2 10

9

26

19

50

45

82

95 177

8 16 24 32

14

+12

15 23 32 96 121

+23 +32 +43 +52

20

4

24 36 56 84 120

12 20 28 36

74



In the option (i) the relation is given but the numerical value is not given, but in option (ii) both relation and numerical value is given.

37. (e) 38. (e)

By combining two statement we get Rohit’s income = Rs. 3,500 Amit’s income = Rs. 7,000 & Jyoti’s income = Rs. 15,500

39. (e) By combining the two statement 7x – 4x = 15 ⇒ x = 5 Suraj’s present age = 5 × 7 = 35 yrs. After 8 yr. Suraj’s age will be = 43 yrs.

40. (e) 41 – 45

Total no. Of product = 900 Product Quantity Cat. A Cat. B Mobile Phone 87 58 29 Television 300 150 150 Refrigerator 288 144 144 Computer 225 135 90

41. (b)

29 + 150 + 140 = 323 42. (b)

%25.3110028890

=×

43. (c)

75.1214

13514415058=

+++

44. (c) 150 : 135 = 10 : 9

45. (e) 225 – 29 = 196

46. (c)

Car speed = hr/km609

540=

Train speed = 2 × 60 = 120 km/hr

Bike speed = hr/km8012032

=×

In five hour bike will cover = 30 × 5 = 400 km 47. (c)

The sum of 4 angle of quadrilateral = 360 ⇒ 3x + 4x + 6x + 5x = 3600 x = 200

Smaller angle of parallelogram = 08023

120=×

⇒ adjacent angle will be = 180 – 80 = 1000 48. (e)

th43

of cost price = 43× 5600 = 4200

Loss % = 56001400

× 100 = 25%

49. (a) S.I on 4 year at 8% = 1200

⇒ 3750841001200p =

××

=

3p = 3750 × 3 = 11250

S.I on 3 year at 6% = 2025100

6311250=

××

50. (c)

Side of sq2 = 196 = 14

Radius of circle = 28, circumstance = 176r2 =π Breath of rectangle = b = 176

Length = L = 1802

b2712=

−

51. (b) 52. (c)

%23.641007.13

7.31.5=×

+

53. (a)

53.23= 4.66 = 4660

54. (e) 55. (e) 56. (a)

No of mathematics teacher = 280, male = 80

%57%1.5710014080

==×

57. (d) 58. (e)

Biology teacher = 240, history teacher = 540 40% increase = 336, 20% decrease = 432 Total = 768

59. (b) 60. (d)

61 b 86 e 111 c 136 e62 c 87 b 112 e 137 a63 e 88 d 113 b 138 b64 e 89 b 114 a 139 c65 d 90 a 115 c 130 b66 b 91 c 116 a 141 a

75



67 e 92 a 117 e 142 d 68 e 93 d 118 a 143 d 69 a 94 b 119 d 144 b 70 c 95 e 120 a 145 a 71 d 96 a 121 a 146 a 72 c 97 e 122 e 147 d 73 a 98 d 123 b 148 b 74 d 99 d 124 d 149 b 75 d 100 b 125 e 150 b 76 a 101 c 126 d 151 c 77 d 102 a 127 c 152 d 78 c 103 b 128 e 153 a 79 c 104 b 129 d 154 e 80 e 105 e 130 c 155 b 81 c 106 c 131 a 156 e 82 d 107 a 132 e 157 c 83 c 108 b 133 e 158 c 84 d 109 c 134 a 159 a 85 a 110 a 135 a 160 b

76



NIACL ASSISTANT MODEL/ PREVIOUS PAPER

(Based on memory)

GENERAL AWARENESS 1. Which of the following countries has decided to

purchase 126 Rafale fighter air‐ crafts from France? (a) Iraq (b) China (c) Bangladesh (d) Afghanistan (e) India

2. Which of the following diseases is considered as completely eradicated from India, as no case of the same has been reported in last one year? (a) Polio (b) Tuberculosis (c) Cancer (d) Swine flu (e) Asthma

3. Which of the following countries in India's neighbourhood is facing charges of violation of human rights of Tamilians living there? (a) Sri Lanka (b) Myanmar (c) Afghanistan (d) Pakistan (e) Nepal

4. Which of the following is NOT an important function of Reserve Bank of India? (a) Management of Foreign Exchange Reserves (b) Foreign Exchange related current and capital

account management (c) Devising Foreign Trade policy of India (d) Debt and Cash Management for State Govts (e) Regulation of Govt. Securities

5. Ms. Kamla Persad Bissessar who was on a visit to India recently is the (a) President of Trinidad & Tobago (b) Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago (c) President of Fiji (d) Prime Minister of Fiji (e) None of these

6. Which of the following statements pertaining to present economic situation of the world is/are true? (a) China and India are making very good

progress on the economic front, thought India is a little slower than China

(b) UK and almost all European nations are now out of economic crisis

(c) US has decided to give 3 lakh thousand US dollars to Iraq as a compensation for its unnecessary attack on it

(d) As WTO is abolished, countries are free to make their own economic coop‐ eration treaties

(e) All are true 7. India recently signed a Multilateral Convention on

Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters. This will help India in having a strict check on which of the following issues? (a) Nuclear safety of its plants (b) Illegal supply of narcotics and drugs (c) Balance of trade (d) Black money stashed abroad (e) Border trade among SAARC nations

8. Which of the following organisations of countries, at one of its crucial meetings in Belgium, in December 2011, had agreed to sign an Inter‐governmental Fiscal Treaty? (a) OPEC (b) SAARC (c) European Union (d) BRICS (e) NATO

9. Business Correspondent Framework launched by the Reserve Bank of India is a step in achieving which of the following? (a) Financial inclusion (b) Transparency in banking transactions (c) Better control over cooperative/small banks (d) Providing direct subsidy to consumers of Publc

Distribution System (PDS) (e) None of these

10. Immediately prior to Sri Mukul roy who among the following was the Railway Minister of India? (a) Dr. Manmohan Singh (b) Sri Kamal Nath (c) Ms. Mamta Banerjee (d) Sri Rajiv Shukla (e) Sri Dinesh Trivedi

11. Nuclear Threat Initiative, the organisation which has compiled first ever index of security materials globally, is an agency based in (a) India (b) USA (c) Japan (d) Germany (e) China

12. Who among the following was the Chief Guest at India's 63rd Republic Day (2012) function? (a) Kamla Persad Bissessar (b) Yingluck Shinawatra (c) David Cameron (d) Hamid Karzai (e) Sheikh Hasina

13. The 169th meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) was organised in December 2011 in (a) Doha (b) Dubai (c) Vienna (d) Tehran

77



(e) Beirut 14. The term of President Pratibha Patil in office will end

in (a) July 2012 (b) June 2013 (c) January 2013 (d) July 2013 (e) January 2014

15. India played Border‐Gavaskar Test series cricket matches in January 2012 with (a) New Zealand (b) England (c) Australia (d) South Africa (e) Kenya

16. Which of the following organisations has recommended that financial literacy should be made part of syllabus from high schools itself? (a) Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) (b) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) (c) Indian Bank's Association (IBA) (d) National Bank for Agriculture and Rural

Development (NABARD) (e) State Bank of India

17. Ranbir Kapoor won Best Actor Award in 57th Filmfare Award functions for his film (a) Wake up Sid (b) Rock Star (c) Anjana Anjanee (d) Rajneeti (e) Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year

18. Prime Minister of India was in Russia on a three day visit in December 2011 to attend (a) G‐20 Summit (b) G‐8 Summit (c) Festival of India (d) India ‐ Russia Summit (e) WTO Summit

19. Who among the following is a Padma Bhushan Awardee? (a) Anand Kumar (b) Shiva Keshavan (c) Vijay Zol (d) Homi K Bhabha (e) Dipika Pallikal

20. Which of the following days is observed as AIDS Day every Year? (a) 10th March (b) 1st December (c) 10th December (d) 1st November (e) 1st March

21. Who among the following won 12th Asian Shooting(Rifle) championship organ‐ ised in Doha in January 2012? (a) Tao Wang (b) Qinan Zhu (c) Shriyanka Sadangi (d) Anjali Bhagwat

(e) Abinav Bindra 22. Which of the following terms is used in the field of

Economics? (a) Ampere (b) Horse Power (c) Relative Density (d) Arbitrage (e) Joule's Law

23. Wasim Jaffer's name was in news recently. He is a well known (a) Chess player (b) Table Tennis player (c) Lawn Tennis player (d) Golf player (e) Cricket player

24. Who among the following is the Chief Justice of India at present? (a) Justice Sujata Manohar (b) Justice Altamas Kabir (c) Justice G S Singhvi (d) Justice S H Kapadia (e) None of these

25. Which of the following represents present Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR)? (a) 5% (b) 4.75% (c) 5.25% (d) 4.50% (e) None of these

26. During 20th ‐ 22nd June 2012, the 'Earth Summit' will take place in (a) New York (b) Paris (c) Rio De Janerio (d) Washington DC (e) Tokyo

27. Who among the following is one of the winners of Nobel Peace Prize for 2011? (a) Edmund S Phelps (b) Akira Suzuki (c) Tawakkol Karman (d) Finn E Kydland (e) Richard F Heck

28. Which of the following organisations is the regulator of stock exchanges in India? (a) RBI (b) SIDBI (c) SEBI (d) NABARD (e) IBA

29. Which of the following schemes is launched by the Govt of India to provide banking services in 73,000 villages in India? (a) ASHA (b) Swabiman (c) Kutir Jyoti (d) RAY (e) Swavalamban

30. What does the letter 'D' denote in the term 'SDR'? (as used in finance) (a) Deposits (b) Data (c) Drawing (d) Debt (e) Dealers

78



31. Which of the following awards is given to sportspersons? (a) Kalidas Samman (b) Saraswati Samman (c) Ashok Chakra (d) Arjuna Award (e) Vysa Samman

32. Who among the following is the President of France at present? (a) Dimitry Medvedev (b) Nicolas Sarkozy (c) Rupert Murdoch (d) Silvio Berlusconi (e) None of these

33. Which of the following books is written by Kiran Desai? (a) A Brush With Life (b) A Fortune Teller Told Me (c) Black Arrow (d) Catch‐22 (e) The Inheritance of Loss

34. Which of the following cups/trophies is associated with the game of cricket? (a) Davis Cup (b) Agha Khan Cup (c) Wimbledon Cup (d) Nehru Cup (e) Ranji Trophy

35. Russia is now a member of which of the following organisations and will be inducted formally from 15th july 2012? (a) G‐20 (b) G‐8 (c) UN Security Council (d) World Trade Organisation (e) OPEC

36. Total Gross National Product divided by the total population is known as which of the following in economics? (a) Statutory Liquidity Ratio (b) Inflation (c) National Income (d) Deflation (e) Per Capita Income

37. Which of the following is a highlight of the Union Budget 2012‐13? (a) GDP growth projected at 9% level (b) Direct Tax Bill to be introduced in 2014‐15 (c) FDI in retail will be allowed from 2015 (d) Marginal increase in personal income tax limits (e) No new scheme in health sector will be launched

38. Which of the following terms is used in the game of football? (a) Penalty (b) Cover Point (c) Cox (d) Bull's Eye (e) Half Nelson

39. Which of the following combinations of the name of countries and their capitals is NOT correct? (a) Bangladesh ‐ Dhaka (b) Afghanistan – Kabul (c) Canada – Ottawa (d) China – Beijing (e) Italy ‐ Milan

40. Which of the following instruments is used to measure intensity of earthquakes? (a) Seismograph (b) Periscope (c) Manometer (d) Galvano meter (d) Dynamometer

GENERAL ENGLISH Directions (Q.41‐50) : Read the following passage carefully and answer the ques‐ tions given below it. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering some of the questions. The kingdom of Vijaynagar had not been enjoying good relations with its neigh ‐ bouring state, Mahanagar, for a very long time. Jealous opponents of Rama, the king's favourite minister, found the perfect opportunity to damage his reputation. So they went about poisoning the king's mind against him. One day, when the king was in his chamber pondering over the affairs of the state, one of his courtiers came in and said, "Your Majesty, have you heard the latest?" The king was surprised and exclaimed, "No, I have not! What's going on?" In his gravest voice, the courtier answered, "Your Majesty, I will tell you only after you promise not to harm me." "Don't be silly," laughed the king, "Say whatever you want to; you need not be afraid of me." "Your majesty, Rama is on the payroll of the king of Mahanagar. He has been spying on us for them". "What are you talking about?" asked the king angrily". This has been going on for a long time. But you would not believe a word against Rama. He has cast such a spell on you that you refuse to even think that he might betray you." "Rama is faith‐ ful to the kingdom. He cannot do this. You have been misinformed", the king replied with confidence. But the courtier convinced the king to regard the statement with some gravity and not dismiss it outright. "Your majesty, I am fully confident about the truth of my information. Do you think I would have spoken to you without verifying the information?" said the courtier. The king promised to get the matter investigated and said that if Rama was found guilty, he would be punished. The king sent for Rama the following day and without wasting time on preliminaries,

79



he asked him whether he was in league with Mahanagar. The question shocked Rama so much that he could not say anything. Rama's silence angered the king and he thundered, "Your silence say that you accept the charge!" Deeply hurt that the king could doubt his loyalty, Rama refused to answer to such a preposterous charge. This angered the king even more. He ordered Rama to leave his kingdom. Rama did not say a single word in his defence and went away with his head bowed. When his enemies heard that Rama had been expelled from the kingdom their joy knew no bounds. Meanwhile, Rama went to Mahanagar and met the king there. He pleased the king with his wit. The king asked Rama who he was and when he revealed his name, the king welcomed him warmly. He had heard much about Rama's sagacity. But the king was surprised to see Rama in his court. "Your king considers me his enemy. So what are you doing here?" Rama replied, "Your Majesty, you are a learned man. You have great strength. You are a good administrator and wish your people well. Our king also possesses all these virtues. He regards you as a friend and he has sent me to resolve the existing misunderstanding between us. "The king was surprised, "Your king considers me a friend? But our spies warned us that your king was thinking of attacking us," said the king. Rama said, "Our spies have fed our king the same pack of lies. That is why he has sent me to you. Has war ever benefitted anybody?" The king was impressed by this statement. He said, "I do not want war, either. But how can I believe that your king really wants peace?" Rama suggested that the king send a mes‐ senger with gifts and a message of peace to Vijaynagar. And if the king accepts the gifts, it would mean that he, too, wants to be friends. But if he returns the gifts, then obviously, he wants war. The king had one doubt. "Won't it be an insult to me if I send the message first?" Rama had a ready answer. "I have come with the message of peace and so it is us who have made the first move". The king liked the sound of that and sent his special messenger to Vijaynagar the next day. Meanwhile, the king of Vijaynagar had come to know that Rama was innocent and that the courtiers had conspired against him. As soon as the messenger from Mahanagar reached him with the gifts, he was delighted. He was full of praise for Rama's wisdom and sent his own minister with gifts to Mahanagar, with a request that the king send Rama back. When Rama returned to Vijaynagar, the King warmly welcomed him. He also promised to punish the clique of courtiers who had poisoned his mind against his favourite minister. 41. The opponents of Rama used which of the following as

an opportunity to poison the king's mind against him?

(a) The fact that Rama had visited mahanagar (b) The fact that Vijaynagar was not on good terms

with Mahanagar (c) The fact that the king of Mahanagar had sent a

messenger to Vijaynagar (d) The fact that Rama was the king's favourite

minister (e) The fact that Rama did not defend himself when

he was accused of spying 42. Why were Rama's opponents happy?

(a) The king had appointed someone else in place of Rama as the minister

(b) The king had forgiven them for poisoning his mind (c) The king had banished Rama from Vijaynagar as a

punishment (d) Rama had taken a job in Mahanagar (e) The messenger had brought costly gifts from the

king of Mahanagar 43. What did the king do the when he heard that his

favourite minister, Rama, was a spy? (a) He ordered his soldiers to behead Rama (b) He banished Rama from Vijayanagar without

asking for an explanation (c) He punished the minster who came to him with

the information (d) He declared a war on Mahanagar (e) He sent for Rama and asked him to tell the truth

44. How did the king of Vijaynagar find out that Rama was innocent? (a) The king of Mahanagar told him (b) The opponents of Rama confessed (c) The messenger from Mahanagar told him (d) The spies informed him (e) Not mentioned in the passage

45. What was Rama's reaction when he was accused of spying? (a) He was so shocked and hurt that he remained silent

and refused to defend him‐ self (b) He accepted the charge against him and left

Vijaynagar (c) He simply resigned from his post and approached the

king of Mahanagar for a job (d) He made sure that his opponents were punished

before he left Vijaynagar (e) He was so embarrassed that he refused to meet

anyone 46. Arrange the follwoing incidents in a chronological

order as they occurred in the passage (A) The king of Vijaynagar welcomed Rama (B) The king was pondering over the affairs of his

state

80



(C) The king of Viyaynagar shouted at Rama (D) The king of Mahanagar was doubtful about

sending his messenger to Vijaynagar (a) BDCA (b) BCAD (c) BCDA (d) CBDA (e) BADC

47. Which of the following qualities can be attributed to Rama as inferred from the passage? (a) Punctual (b) Disloyal (c) Rude (d) Intelligent (e) Arrogant

48. Why was the king of Mahanagar skeptical about Rama's presence in his court? (a) He had heard that Rama was a spy from

Vijaynagar (b) He belived that the king of Vijayanagar considered

him as an enemy (c) He did not like the way Rama went on praising

him (d) He knew that Rama had been banished from

Vijaynagar for spying (e) His spies had already poisoned his mind against

Rama 49. Why did Rama ask the king Mahanagar to send a

messenger with gifts to Vijaynagar? (a) In order to ensure that the king of Vijaynagar did

not want war (b) Because the king of Vijaynagar liked gifts (c) It was his way of apologising for being disloyal to

Vijaynagar (d) In order to show the king of Vijaynagar that

Mahanagar was a wealthy state (e) In order to please Rama's opponents

50. Which of the following is true according to the passage? (a) Rama's opponents were jealous of him (b) The king of Mahanagar sent a messenger to

Vijaynagar (c) The king of Vijaynagar welcomed Rama back to his

kingdom (d) Rama succeeded in improving the relations

between Vijaynagar and Mahanagar (e) All are true

Directions (Q.51‐53) : Choose the word/group of words which is most similar in the meaning to the word/group of words printed in bold as used in the passage. 51. Preposterous

(a) Believable (b) Cunning (c) Understandable (d) Absurd

(e) Accurate 52. Fed

(a) Told (b) Ate (c) Sentenced (d) Covered (e) Taught

53. Cast a spell on (a) Hypnotised (b) Impressed (c) Arrested (d) Caught (e) Cheated

Directions (Q.54‐55) : Choose the word/group of words which is most opposite in meaning to the word/group of words printed in bold as used in the passage. 54. Innocent

(a) Suspicious (b) Clear (c) Intelligent (d) Loyal (e) Guilty

55. Dismiss (a) Ignore (b) Overlook (c) Forget (d) Remember (e) Accept

Directions (Q.56‐60) : Each sentence below has two blanks, each blank indicat‐ ing that something has been omitte(d) Choose the set of words for each blank which best fits the meaning of the sentence as a whole 56. The artist had to ‐‐‐ a lot before ‐‐‐ recognised for his

talent. (a) struggle, being (b) toil, he (c) practise, performing (d) effort, he was (e) strive, the

57. Most of the committee members ‐‐‐ in favour of the ‐‐‐ of a new dam in that village (a) was, building (b) are, proposing (c) Were, construction (d) not, assembly (e) still, breaking

58. She ‐‐‐ to learn basic German as she will be ‐‐‐ for Germany next month. (a) likes, reaching (b) wants, leaving (c) intends, visiting (d) tries, touring (e) knows, going

59. They ..... a sound infrastructure in order to ..... with the new challenges. (a) want, handle (b) got, meets (c) have, give (d) need, cope (e) had, reach

81



60. As soon as she ..... the branch office, she was asked to ..... to the head‐office immediately (a) came, go (b) went, attend (c) reached, report (d) found, look (e) saw, remind

Directions (Q 61‐65) : Read each sentence to find out whether there is any gram‐ matical error or idiomatic error in it. The error, if any, will be in one part of the sentence. The number of that part is the answer. If there is 'No Error' the answer is (e). (Igone errors of punctuation if any) 61. The temple is at located (a) / such a high altitude that

it is (b) / Impossible to go there (c) / during the winter season. (d) / No Error (e)

62. On reaching the (a) / lake, the leader realised (b) / that two elephant from (c) / his herd were missing. (d) / No Error (e)

63. The buiders have (a) / promised a customers (b) / that the construction willl be (c) / completed as soon as possible (d) / No Error (e)

64. Pratik was extremely (a) / happy when he (b) / saw his favourite (c) / actor at near the mall (d) / No Error (e)

65. Vanita managed to (a) / answers all the questions (b) / whereas her friend could (c) / answer only a few (d) / No Error (e)

Directions (Q.66‐70): Which of the phrases (a), (b) (c) and (d) given below should replace the phrase given in bold in the following sentence to make the sen‐ tence grammatically meaningful and correct? If the sentence is correct as it is and 'No correction is required', mark (e) as the answer. 66. My friends tried play a tricks on me on April Fools Day.

(a) tricked (b) Played a trick (c) Playing the trick (d) Play a trick (e) No correction required

67. His business has been gone downhill ever since his brother left. (a) went downhill (b) go downhill (c) going downhill (d) going downhills (e) No correction required

68. The thief finally decide to confess his crime just before the trial started (a) decision to confess (b) decided to confessed

(c) decide to confession (d) decided to confess (e) No correction required

69. They had registered a complaint against her as she have violated the contract. (a) had violence (b) had violated (c) has violate (d) have violate (e) No correction required

70. Last evening, the actor throw a party at his residence (a) threw a party (b) threw the parties (c) thrown a party (d) throw the party (e) No correction required

Directions (Q.71‐80) : In the following passage there are blanks, each of which has been numbered. These numbers are printed below the passage, against each, five words are suggested, one of which fits the blank appropriately. Find out the appropriate word in each case. Once there was a lake which was (71) for using the lak(e) Every six months, the swans would leave a golden feather as a (72) for using the lak(e) The soldiers of the kingdom in which the lake was, would collect the feathers and deposit them in the royal treasury One day, a homeless bird saw the lake. "The water in this lake (73) so cool and soothing. I will (74) my nest here", thought the bird. As soon as the bird settled down near the lake, the golden swans noticed her. They shouted, "This lake belongs to us! We pay a golden feather to the King for using it. You can not live here." "I am homeless, brothers. I too will pay the rent. Please give me (75)." the bird pleaded. "How will you pay the rent?, You do not have golden feathers," said the swans, laughing. They further added, "Stop dreaming and leave at once". The humble bird pleaded many times. But the arrogant swans (76) her away. "I will teach them a lesson!" decided the humiliated bird. She went to the King and said, "O King! The swans in your lake are impolite and unkind. I begged for shelter but they said they had rented the lake." The King was angry with the arrogant swans for (77) insulted the homeless bird. He ordered his soldiers to bring the arrogant swans to his court. In no time, all the golden swans were brought to the King's court. "Do you think the royal treasury depends upon your golden feathers? You cannot decide who lives by the lake. Leave the lake at once or you all will be beheaded!" shouted the King. The swans shivered with (78) on hearing the King. They flew away

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and never (79). The bird built her home near the lake and lived there happily forever. The bird gave shelter to all other birds who (80) to stay near the lake. 71. (a) local (b) helping

(c) liked (d) home (e) water

72. (a) treasure (b) interest (c) fee (d) charging (e) money

73. (a) sees (b) acts (c) look (d) seems (e) finds

74. (a) keeps (b) draw (c) make (d) find (e) built

75. (a) rent (b) feathers (c) nest (d) lake (e) shelter

76. (a) took (b) send (c) walked (d) drove (e) flew

77. (a) having (b) showing (c) giving (d) saying (e) doing

78. (a) happiness (b) delight (c) nervous (d) amusement (e) fear

79. (a) lived (b) returned (c) flew (d) insulted (e) stayed

80. (a) paid (b) wished (c) demand (d) likes (e) hope

QUANTITATIVE APTITUDE

Directions (Q.81‐95) : What value should come in the place of question mark(?) in the following questions?

81. 3.3 + 13.33 + 31.13 + 13.31 + 1.3 = ? (a) 64.31 (b) 62.37 (c) 64.47 (d) 62.17 (e) None of these

82. (16)2 + (21)2 ‐ (13)2 + ? = (25)2 (a) 67 (b) 32 (c) 81 (d) 97 (e) none of these

83. 47 + 345 ÷ 15 × 2 = ? (a) 68 (b) 93 (c) 59 (d) 71

(e) None of these 84. 73% of 5800 ‐ 69% of 240 = ?

(a) 4608.3 (b) 4210.8 (c) 4008.4 (d) 4680.4 (e) None of these

85. 585 × 22 – 44 = ? (a) 13826 (b) 14826 (c) 12862 (d) 12826 (e) None of these

86. 3.2 × 2.1 × 1.6 = ? (a) 12.732 (b) 10.752 (c) 17.520 (d) 15.270 (e) None of these

87. 422 – 222 + 382 = ? (a) 8268 (b) 9124 (c) 8964 (d) 9024 (e) None of these

88. 65 × 15 ÷ ? = 195 (a) 5 (b) 2 (c) 1 (d) 6 (e) None of these

89. 204% of ? = 1848.24 (a) 517 (b) 784 (c) 321 (d) 906 (e) None of these

90. 9786 ‐ 4321 + 5053 = ? – 3727 (a) 14245 (b) 14524 (c) 14452 (d) 14254 (e) None of these

91. 58% of 1204 + 33.33% of 900 = ? (a) 998.32 (b) 947.52 (c) 927.82 (d) 1012.42 (e) None of these

92. 92. ?93

97292 =

××


93. 23 + 636 ÷ 12 ‐ 14 = ? (a) 41 (b) 53 (c) 62 (d) 78 (e) None of these

94. 637.28 – 781.47 + 257.39 = ? (a) 113.20 (b) 104.30 (c) 122.40 (d) 133.50 (e) None of these

95. 6.5 ÷ 0.5 × 2 ‐ 4 = ? (a) 31 (b) 19 (c) 22 (d) 27 (e) None of these

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96. At what rate of simple interest will Rs. 4800 amount of Rs. 6480 in a span of 7 years? (a) 5 (b) 6 (c) 3 (d) 4 (e) None of these

97. How much will a sum of Rs. 6,300 amount to in a span of 2 years, at 5 pcpa rate of compound interest (rounded off to the nearest integer)? (a) Rs. 6946 (b) Rs. 6876 (c) Rs. 6521 (d) Rs. 6790 (e) Rs. 6492

98. In how many different ways can the letters of the word BAKERY be arranged? (a) 2400 (b) 2005 (c) 720 (d) 5040 (e) None of these

99. What will be the average of the following set of scores (rounded off to the nearest integer)? 62, 76, 42, 84, 21, 47, 28 (a) 57 (b) 54 (c) 51 (d) 62 (e) 66

100. The product of three consecutive numbers is 3360. What is the least number? (a) 17 (b) 14 (c) 13 (d) 16 (e) None of these

101. The area of circle is 2464 square meters. What will its circumference be? (a) 132 meters (b) 176 meters (c) 232 meters (d) 272 meters (e) 109 meters

102. The cost of 24 pens and 13 pencils is Rs. 175. What is the cost of 48 pens and 26 pencils? (a) Rs. 435 (b) Rs. 705 (c) Rs. 290 (d) Rs. 350 (e) None of these

Directions (Q.103‐105) : Study the following information and answer the ques‐ tions that follow: A sum of Rs. 10,980 is to be divided amongst A, B and C in the ratio 7 : 3 : 5 103. What is C's share?

(a) Rs. 3,600 (b) Rs. 3,006 (c) Rs. 3,060 (d) Rs. 3,660 (e) Rs. 3,124

104. What is the sum of B's and C's share? (a) Rs. 5,685 (b) Rs. 5,865 (c) Rs. 5,897 (d) Rs. 5,873

(e) Rs. 5,856 105. What is the difference between A's and B's share?

(a) Rs. 2,196 (b) Rs. 2,928 (c) Rs. 2,961 (d) Rs. 2,289 (e) Rs. 2,982

106. If the perimeter of a rectangle is 138 metres and the difference between the length and the breadth is 7 metres, what is the area of the rectangle? (a) 1216 square meters (b) 1147 square metres (c) 1184 square metres (d) 1178 square metres (e) None of these

Directins (Q.107‐111) : What should come in place of question mark(?) in the fol‐ lowing number series? 107. 7, 17, 54, ?, 1098, 6591


108. 55, 109, ? 433, 865, 1729 (a) 279 (b) 372 (c) 217 (d) 318 (e) None of these

109. 19, 38, ?, 228, 684, 1368 (a) 106 (b) 114 (c) 121 (d) 98 (e) None of these

110. 87, 89, 95, 107, ?, 157 (a) 127 (b) 122 (c) 139 (d) 140 (e) None of these

111. 474, 459, 429, 369, 249, ? (a) 9 (b) 0 (c) 4 (d) 11 (e) None of these

112. 10 years ago, the ages of A and B were in the ratio of 13 : 17. 17 years from now the ratio of their ages will be 10 : 11. What is the age of B at present? (a) 23 years (b) 40 years (c) 27 years (d) 44 years (e) None of these

Directions (Q.113‐117) : Study the following table and answer the questions that follow: The table represents the total sales value (in lakhs) of five books, P, Q, R, S and T across eight book stores, A, B, C, D,

E, F, G and H. Books Book stores

A B C D E F G H

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P 560 590 210 670 560 680 420 460

Q 550 560 890 230 820 610 520 230

R 450 290 540 530 500 520 560 410

S 230 240 560 400 430 200 210 480

T 230 400 410 240 200 360 500 470113. What is the ratio the total sales values of Book P

across all the bookstores and Book S across all the bookstores? (a) 83 : 55 (b) 85 : 53 (c) 83 :53 (d) 89 : 55 (e) None of these

114. The sale of the book R from Bookstore H is what per cent of the total sale of Book R across all the bookstores (rounded off to two places after the decimal)? (a) 21.12 (b) 17.19 (c) 7.43 (d) 3.04 (e) 10.79

115. What is the average sale (in lakh) of Bookstore E? (a) 502 (b) 504 (c) 512 (d) 540 (e) None of these

116. Book Q constituted approximately what per cent of the total sales of Bookstore C? (a) 34 (b) 39 (c) 32 (d) 23 (e) 28

117. What is the total sales value (in lakh) of Bookstore D? (a) 2510 (b) 2670 (c) 2900 (d) 2070 (e) None of these

118. The cost price of an article is Rs. 480. If it is to be sold at a profit of 6.25 per cent, what would its selling price be? (a) Rs. 510 (b) Rs. 530 (c) Rs. 503 (d) Rs. 519 (e) None of these

119. 13 articles were bought for Rs. 5,980 and sold for Rs. 6,656. What was the approxi‐ mate profit percentage per article? (a) 15% (b) 11% (c) 9% (d) 19% (e) 13%

120. A and B together can complete a particular task in 4 days. If A alone can com‐ plete the same task in 6 days, how many days will B take to complete the task if he works alone? (a) 8 (b) 7 (c) 14 (d) 12 (e) None of these

REASONING ABILITY Directions (Q.121‐125) : In each question given below are two/three statements followed by two conclusions numbered I and II. You have to take the two/three given statements to be true even if they seem to be at variance with commonly known facts and then decide which of the given conclusions logically follow from the given statements, disregarding commonly known facts. Give answer (a) if only conclusion I follows (b) if only conclusion II follows (c) if either conclusion I or conclusion II follows (d) if neither conclusion I nor conclusion II follows (e) if both conclusion I and conclusion II follow 121. Statements : No corner is a side. All sides are ends.

Conclusions : I. No end is a corner II. All ends are sides

122. Statements : All questions are answers. All answers are replies. All replies are inquiries. Conclusions : I. All answers are inquiries.

II. All replies are questions. 123. Statements : All planets are stars. No star is a moon

Conclusions : I. Some moons are planets. II. No planet is a moon

124. Statements: Some laws are rules. All rules are sentences. Conclusions : I. At least some sentences are laws.

II. At least some rules are laws. 125. Statements : Some kites are birds. Some birds are

animals Conclusions: I. No animal is a kite

II. Some animals are definitely not birds

Directions (Q.126‐130) : Study the following information to answer the given questions: In a certain code 'answer it right' is written as 'baja nu', 'where is it' is written as 'fi ba to', 'right from here' is written as 'sa vi ja'; and 'here she is' is written as 'fi sa ho'. 126. Which of the following may represent 'absolutely right

answer'? (a) ja nu vi (b) ko zi nu (c) nu ko ja (d) nu ja fi (e) zi ba nu

127. What is the code for 'from'? (a) sa (b) vi

85



(c) ja (d) ba (e) Either 'vi' or 'ba'

128. What is the code for 'is'? (a) ba (b) to (c) fi (d) ho (e) can not be determined

129. What is the code for 'she'? (a) fi (b) sa (c) ho (d) ja (e) Cannot be determined

130. What does the code 'sa' stand for? (a) here (b) from (c) she (d) right (e) Either 'from' or 'is'

Directions (Q.131‐135) : Study the following information carefully and answer the given questions A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H are sitting around a circular table facing the centre but not necessarily in the same order.

• C is an immediate neighbour of both G and A E sits second to the left of C

• Two people sit betwen E and H • B is an immediate neighbour of G. Only one

person sits between B and F. 131. What is the position of D with respect to H in the

above arrangement? (a) Third to the left (b) Immediate left (c) Fifth to the right (d) Immediate right (e) Second to the right

132. Four of the following five are alike in a certain way and thus form a group. Which is the one that does not belong to that group? (a) CH (b) FE (c) AB (d) GF (e) DC

133. Who sits second to the left of A? (a) F (b) B (c) D (d) H (e) Cannot be determined

134. Who among the following is an immediate neighbour of both B and F?

(a) G (b) C (c) D (d) A (e) H

135. B is related to E in a certain way based on the given seating arrangement. In the same way A is related to H. To whom amongst the following is D related to, following the same pattern? (a) B (b) C (c) A (d) G (e) F

Directions (Q.136‐140) : In these questions, the relationship between different elements is shown in the statements. The statements are followed by two conclusions. Give answer (a) if only conclusion I is true (b) if only conclusion II is true (c) if either conclusion I or II is true (d) if neither conclusion I nor II is true (e) if both conclusions I and II are true 136. Statements: F < R ≥ O = M ≤ T = K

Conclusions: I. K ≥ O II. F > M 137. 137. Statements: G = N ≤ O ≥ P > Q = R

Conclusions: I. O > R II. P ≤ G 138. 138. Statements: F < O = L ≤ W = S

Conclusions: I. W ≤ F II. O ≥ S 139. 139. Statements: B = R ≥ T < O = P ≥ S

Conclusions: I. B < O II. T < S 140. 140. Statements: P > Q ≥ A < R = I

Conclusions: I. A < P II. I > A

Directions (Q.141‐145) : Study the following information to answer the given questions:

P, Q, R, S, T, V and W are sitting in a straight line facing north but not necessarily in the same order. R sits third to the left of W. Neither R nor W sits at extreme ends of the line. Only one person sits between R and T. S is not an immediate neighbour of either R or W. Two people sit betwen T and P. Q is an immediate neighbour of S.

141. Who amongst the following sits exactly between R and T? (a) P (b) Q (c) V (d) S (e) None of these

142. How many persons are sitting between P and W? (a) One (b) Two (c) Three (d) Four (e) More than four

143. What is the position of T with respect to Q? (a) Third to the left

86



(b) Fourth to the right (c) Second to the right (d) Second to the left (e) Immediate left

144. Which of the following pairs represents persons sitting at two extreme ends of the line? (a) S, V (b) P, S (c) T, V (d) P, Q (e) P, T

145. Which of the following is true with respect to the given arrangement? (a) Two people sit to the left of R. (b) S sits to the immediate left of Q. (c) W and V sit between T and P. (d) Only one person sits to the right of S. (e) None is true

Disrections (Q.146‐148) : Four of the following five are alike in a certain way based on the English alphabetical series and so form a group. Which is the one that does not belong to that group? 146. (a) OPKL (b) TUXY

(c) YZUV (d) MNIJ (e) FGBC

147. (a) GHJE (b) TUWR (c) MNPK (d) DEGC (e) WXZU

148. (a) TVQ (b) DFB (c) HJE (d) LNI (e) PRM

Directions (Q.149‐150) : Four of th following five are alike in a certain way and so form a group. Which is the one that does not belong to that group? 149. (a) Heavy (b) High

(c) Short (d) Low (e) Tall

150. (a) Outstanding (b) Nice (c) Excellent (d) Good (e) Kind

Directions (Q.151‐160) : In each of the questions given below which one of the five answer figures on the right should come after the problem figures on the left, if the sequence were continued?

151. Problem Figures

Answer Figures


Answer Figures


Answer Figures


Answer Figures


Answer Figures


87



Answer Figures


Answer Figures


Answer Figures


Answer Figures


Answer Figures

GENERAL AWARENESS

161. A 'Call' in marketing jargon means

(a) a phone call (b) browsing the net

(c) to call on a prospect (d) a call centre (e) a place of worship

162. The task of marketing involves (a) opening new branches (b) buying a company (c) selling a company (d) selling products and services of a company (e) mergers

163. Service Marketing is the same as (a) relationship marketing (b) transaction marketing (c) passive marketing (d) internal marketing (e) instant marketing

164. 'Conversion' means (a) to convert losses in to profits (b) to convert profits into losses (c) to change a product suitably to suit each customer (d) to convert a prospect into a buyer (e) selling products and services of a company

165. The type of marketing involved in banks is (a) transactions marketing (b) service marketing (c) commodity marketing (d) ruthless marketing (e) indifferent marketing

166. Market space means (a) place where goods are sold (b) trade fairs and meals (c) road shows (d) scope avilable for selling (e) competition

167. A 'lead' means (a) a leash (b) a leader (c) an interested buyer (d) ADSA (e) a cold call

168. ADSA's (Direct Selling Agent's) main job is (a) to design products (b) to sell to the target group (c) to do market survey (d) to distribute profits (e) to earn incentives

169. Transaction marketing involves selling of (a) mere goods (b) mere services (c) ideas and thoughts (d) repair work (e) after ‐ sales service

88



170. A 'Prospect' means (a) newly designed product (b) a team leader (c) a likely buyer (d) ATM usage (e) internet transaction

171. Marketing techniques include (a) good arguing skills (b) good joking skills (c) effective negotiation skills (d) walking skills (e) story telling skills

172. Service marketing implies selling of (a) only goods (b) only services (c) web servers (d) various commodities (e) goods and services

173. Marketing channels means (a) outlets from where sales take place (b) channel finacing (c) focusing sales on one single group (d) home delivery (e) courier service

174. Market share means (a) share capital of the company (b) staff strength of the company (c) employees stock option (d) share price quoted in the market (e) percentage share of business of the company, as

compared to peers 175. The target group for tractor loans is

(a) cold storge plants (b) farmers with large landholding (c) farm labourers (d) agriculture Colleges (e) vegetable vendors

176. "Cross‐selling" means (a) selling to enemies (b) selling new products (c) reversal of a sale (d) selling other products existing customers (e) public relations

177. The target group for an ATM‐cum‐Debit Card is (a) all primary school children (b) all prisoners (c) firms (d) all existing and prospective customers (e) other bank's customers

178. The target group for a car loan is (a) all high income individuals

(b) all car dealers (c) all students (d) all BPL persons (e) blind persons

179. A Savings Account with insurance benefit is (a) a long term loan account (b) a running overdraft facility (c) a non‐fund facility (d) a type of remittance facility (e) a value‐added deposit account

180. The leads for a car loan can be had from (a) car manfacturing companies (b) car dealers (c) car owners (d) car mechanics (e) back office staff

181. Which type of memory gets lost when your switch off? (a) ROM (b) RAM (c) Cache (d) Dynamic (e) Static

182. What is the name of the program that controls the computer? (a) The Operating System (b) An Application Program (c) A Browser (d) The File Manager (e) The Compiler

183. Which type of network would use phone lines? (a) WAN (b) LAN (c) WWAN (d) Wireless (e) None of these

184. What type of devices are computer speakers or headphones? (a) Input (b) Input/Output (c) Software (d) Storage (e) Output

185. Which type of memory holds the program to start up the computer? (a) ROM (b) RAM (c) Cache (d) Static (e) None of these

186. A program for viewing web pages is called (a) Word Processor (b) Spreadsheet (c) Protocol (d) A browser (e) Database

187. The term used to describe the intangible instructions that tell the computer what to do is (a) hardware (b) software (c) storage (d) input/output (e) None of these

89



188. A computer tower is not (a) a CPU (b) Hardware (c) the "Heart" of the computer (d) a peripheral (e) None of these

189. A computer cannot perform which of the following functions? (a) Addition (b) Subtraction (c) Bake a cake (d) Division (e) None of these

190. Which of the following has the smallest storage capacity (a) zip disk (b) hard disk (c) floppy disk (d) data cartridge (e) CD

191. What type of devices are CDs or DVDs? (a) Input (b) Output (c) Software (d) Storage (e) Input/Output

192. Why has RAM been named like this? (a) Because it is read and write memory (b) Because it is volatile memory (c) Because any of the locations in chip can directly

be selected for storing and retrieving data and instructions.

(d) Because it is non‐volatile memory (e) None of these

193. What is the full form of URL (a) Uniform Reverse Location (b) Universal Resolution Location (c) Universal Resource Locator (d) Universal Re‐enginering Location (e) United Resource Locator

194. Easily relocatable language is (a) Machine language (b) Assembly language (c) Low‐level language (d) Medium Level language (e) High Level language

195. Which of the following describes the characteristic features of SRAM? (a) Cheap but slow (b) More consumption of power and much costly (c) Based on transistor ‐ capacitor combinations (d) Low consumption of power (e) None of these

196. Free of cost repair of software bug available at internet is called (a) Version (b) Ad‐on (c) Tutorial (d) FAR

(e) Patch 197. Which of the following is READ only disc

(a) DVD‐R (b) DVD‐ROM (c) DVD‐RW (d) CD‐R (e) None of these

198. Which of the following is not a computer language? (a) High level language (b) Machine language (c) Low level language (d) Medium level language (e) None of these

199. The speed of clock frequency of a micro processor is measured in (a) Hertz (b) Baud rate (c) CPS (d) Bits (d) Bytes

200. Normally which of the following is costlier (a) Server (b) Notebook computer (c) Personal computer (d) Laptop computer (e) Main frame computer

ANSWER KEYS

1 e 25 d 49 c 73 d 2 a 26 c 50 e 74 c 3 a 27 c 51 d 75 e 4 c 28 c 52 a 76 d 5 b 29 b 53 b 77 a 6 a 30 c 54 e 78 e 7 d 31 d 55 e 79 b 8 c 32 e 56 a 80 b 9 a 33 e 57 c 81 b 10 e 34 e 58 c 82 d 11 b 35 d 59 d 83 b 12 b 36 e 60 c 84 e 13 c 37 d 61 a 85 d 14 a 38 a 62 c 86 b 15 c 39 e 63 b 87 d 16 b 40 a 64 d 88 a 17 b 41 d 65 b 89 d 18 d 42 c 66 d 90 a 19 d 43 b 67 c 91 a 20 b 44 e 68 d 92 b 21 e 45 a 69 b 93 c 22 d 46 c 70 a 94 a 23 e 47 d 71 d 95 c 24 b 48 b 72 c 96 a

90



97. (a) 98. (c)

6! = 720 99. (c) 100 (b)

14 × 15 × 16 = 3360 101. (b)

Area of circle = 2464 2rπ = 2464

r = 28

circumference= rπ2 = 1761 102. (d)

24 Pen+13 Pencil =Rs.175 ×2 ×2 ×2 48 pen + 26 Pencil =Rs.350

103. (d) 104 (e) 105 (b) 106. (d)

Perimeter of rectangle = 2 (l + b) = 138 l – b = 7 ⇒ 2(l + b) = 138 l = 38 ⇒ l + b = 69 b = 31 l – b = 7 2l = 76 l = 38 Area = l × 3 = 38 × 31 = 1178 sq. meter

107. (d) 108. (c) 109. (b) 110. (a)

111. (a)

112. (c) Let A age = x, B age = Y

)ii.....(1110

27y27x&)i....(

1713

yx

=++

=

By solving these 2 equation we get x = 23 y = 27

113. (a) 4150 : 2750 = 83 : 55

114. (e)

79.101003800410

=×

115. (a)

5025

2510=

116. (a)

1.341002610890

=×

117. (d) 118. (a)

510100

25.106480 =×

119. (b)

%33.11100

13598013

59806656

=×

−

120. (d)

122

46=

×

workofdifferentworkaloneworkboth ×

121. (d)

122. (a)

123. (b)

124. (e)

(i)

(ii)

Rules Sentence Laws

87

+2 +6

89

+12

95

+20

107

+30

127 157

+4 +6 +8 +10

474

–15 –30

459

–60

429

–120

369

–240

249 9

corner Sid Ends

(i)

(ii)

Inquires Question Answer Replies

(i)

(ii)

(i)

(ii)

Planet Star moon

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125. (d)

126. (c) 127. (b) 128. (c) 129. (c) 130. (a)

131 – 135

131. (e) 132. (b) 133. (c) 134. (e) 135. (d) 136. (a) 137. (a) 138. (d) 139. (d) 140. (e)

141 – 145

141. (c) 142. (c) 143. (d) 144. (b) 145. (e) 146. (b) 147. (d)

148. (b)

149. (a) 150. (e) 151. (a) 152. (d) 153. (b) 154. (c) 155. (d) 156. (d) 157. (d) 158. (b) 159. (b) 160. (a)

161 c 171 c 181 b 191 d 162 d 172 d 182 a 192 c 163 a 173 a 183 a 193 c 164 d 174 e 184 e 194 b 165 b 175 b 185 a 195 b 166 d 176 d 186 d 196 e 167 c 177 d 187 b 197 b 168 b 178 a 188 d 198 d 169 a 179 e 189 c 199 a 170 c 180 b 190 c 200 e

(i)

(ii)

Birds Kites Animals

F H

B

G

C A

E

D

P V W R T Q S

N

S

W

E

T Q V +2

–3

H E J +2

–3

D B F

+2 –2

L I N +2

–3

P M R

+2 –3

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WHO’S WHO List of Important UN organizations with Heads for all Competitive Exams

Food and Agriculture Organization

Director‐General – JoséGraziano da Silva, Brazil (2012–present)

International Atomic Energy Agency

Director‐General – YukiyaAmano, Japan (2009–present)

International Civil Aviation Organization

President of the Council –Roberto Kobeh Gonzalez, Mexico (2006–present)Secretary‐General – Raymond Benjamin, France (2009–present)

International Labour Organization

Director‐General – Guy Ryder,UK (2012–present)

United Nations Secretary‐General Ban KiMoon, South Korea (2007–present)

United Nations President of the GeneralAssemblyVukJeremic, Serbia (2012–2013) John William Ashe, Antigua and Barbuda (2013‐2014)

United Nations Security Council members –China, France, Russia,Security Council members – China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States (permanent members) Azerbaijan, Guatemala, Morocco, Pakistan, Togo (elected for 2012–2013) Argentina, Australia, Republic of Korea, Luxembourg, Rwanda (elected for 2013–2014) United Kingdom, United States (permanent members)

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

Executive Director – AnthonyLake, United States (2010–present)

United Nations Educational,

Director‐General – IrinaBokova, Bulgaria (2009–

Scientific andCultural Organization (UNESCO)

present)

United NationsHigh Commissioner for Human Rights

High Commissioner –NavanethemPillay, South Africa (2008–present)

United NationsHigh Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

High Commissioner –AntónioGuterres, Portugal (2005–present)

United NationsIndustrial Development Organization (UNIDO)

Director‐general –KandehYumkella, Sierra Leone (2005–present)

World FoodProgramme (WFP)

Executive Director –JosetteSheeran, United States (2007–present)

World HealthOrganization (WHO)

Director‐General – MargaretChan, China (acting) (2007–present)

WorldMeteorological Organization (WMO)

President – AlexanderBedritsky, Russia (2003–present)

WorldMeteorological Organization (WMO)

Secretary‐General – MichelJarraud, France (2004–present)

World TourismOrganization (UNWTO)

Secretary‐General –TalebRifai, Jordan (2010–present)

International Political and Economic Organizations Heads for Bank Exams

Arab League Secretary‐General –Nabil Elaraby, Egypt (2011–present)

Asia‐Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)

Executive Director –Muhamad Noor, Malaysia (2010–present)

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

Secretary‐General – Le Luong Minh, Vietnam (2013–present)

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Central American Parliament

President –DorindoCortéz, Panama (2010–present)

Common Market of East and Southern Africa (COMESA)

Secretary‐General –SindisoNgwenya, Zimbabwe (2008–present)

Commonwealth of Nations

Head – Queen Elizabeth II (1952–present), Secretary‐General – Kamalesh Sharma, India (2008–present)

Commonwealth of Independent States

Executive Secretary –Sergei Lebedev, Russia (2007–present)

Council of Europe Secretary General –ThorbjørnJagland, Norway (2009–present)

President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE)

MevlütÇavuşoğlu, Turkey (2010–present)

President of the European Court of Human Rights

Jean‐Paul Costa, France (2007–present)

East African Community Secretary‐General –Richard Sezibera, Rwanda (2011–present)

European Union (EU) Presidency of the European Council – Herman Van Rompuy (2009–present)

NATIONAL Ministry of India 2014

1

Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions Dept of Atomic Energy, Dept of Space

Narendra Modi

2 Ministry of Finance Ministry of

Arun Jaitley

Information & Broadcasting Ministry of Corporate Affairs

3 Ministry of Home Affairs

Shri Rajnath Singh

4

Ministry of External Affairs Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs

Smt. Sushma Swaraj

5

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways Ministry of Shipping

Nitin Gadkari

6

Ministry of Urban Development Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs

M. Venkaiah Naidu

7 Ministry of Defence Manohar Parrikar 8 Ministry of Railways Suresh Prabhu

9 Ministry of Law & Justice

D. V. Sadananda Gowda

10 Ministry of Water Resources & Ganga Rejuvenation

Uma Bharti

11 Ministry of Minority Affairs

Najma Heptullah

12 Ministry of Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution

Shri Ram Vilas Paswan

13 Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises

Shri Kalraj Mishra

14 Ministry of Women & Child Development

Maneka Gandhi

15 Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers

Ananth Kumar

16

Ministry of Communications and Information Technology

Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad

17 Ministry of Health & Family Welfare

Jagat Prakash Nadda

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18 Ministry of Civil Aviation

Ashok Gajapati Raju Pusapati

19 Ministry of Civil Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises

Shri Anant Geete

20 Ministry of Food Processing Industries

Harsimrat Kaur Badal

21 Ministry of Mines Ministry of Steel

Shri Narendra Singh Tomar

22

Ministry of Rural Development Ministry of Panchayati Raj Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation

Chaudhary Birender Singh

23 Ministry of Tribal Affairs

Jual Oram

24 Ministry of Agriculture

Shri Radha Mohan Singh

25 Ministry of Human Resource Development

Smriti Irani

26 Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment

Shri Thawar Chand Gehlot

27

Ministry of Science and Technology Ministry of Earth Science

Dr. Harsh Vardhan

ONE LINER

1. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation for retail payment system in India, on 18 February 2015 launched a unified platform for providing a single payment interface across all systems. What is the name of this interface that will enable all account holders to send and receive money from their smartphones with a single identifier? – Unified Payment Interface (UPI)

2. Rajinder Puri, who passed away on 16 February 2015, was a noted personality associated with which field? – Cartooning

3. Indian Air Force’s (IAF) dare‐devil aerobatic squadron, which was grounded for last 4 years, is all set to take to the skies once again. The squadron is expected to come back in action within 6 to 8 months. What is the name

of this world‐famous dare‐devil aerobatic squadron? – Surya Kiran

4. In the 8th auction of Indian Premier League (IPL) held on 16 February 2015, Yuvaraj Singh emerged as the costliest player of the auction. Which IPL franchisee purchased him for a record price of Rs. 16 crore? – Delhi Daredevils

5. Which India‐born executive was appointed as the CEO of accounting giant Deloitte’s global operations on 15 February 2015? – Punit Renjen

6. India’s first Renewable Energy Global Investors’ Meet and Expo was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 February 2015. What is the name of this summit? – Re‐Invest India 2015

7. The 35th National Games of India concluded on 14 February 2015 at Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala). Which three teams occupied the top three spots in the final medals tally? – Services, Kerala and Haryana

8. National Lok Adalat was held on 14 February 2015 with over 56,000 cases disposed of across the country. This was which edition of National Lok Adalat, which is held under the patronage of the Chief Justice of India? – 3rd

9. Which Scandinavian country came under attacks on 14 and 15 February 2015, which are said to be inspired by an attack on French satirical weekly ‘Charlie Hebdo’ last month? – Denmark

10. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal made what distinction as far as allocation of portfolios is concerned? – He did not took any ministerial portfolio in Delhi Cabinet

11. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” campaign got a major boost on 14 February 2015 when US multinational company General Electric (GE) opened its first manufacturing plant in India. This facility comprising of multi‐modal facility primarily for exports has been established at which place? – Chakan (Pune)

12. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 13 February announced it would soon put in circulation currency notes with the denomination of Re 1. When printing of Re. 1 notes was discontinued by the govt. due to higher printing costs? – November 1994

13. India successfully test fired the supersonic BrahMos cruise missile from a state‐of‐the‐art naval warship on 14 February 2015. This test carried out in the Arabian Sea involved which warship? – INS Kolkata

14. The first National Tribal Festival of India started from 13 February 2015 at Delhi. What is the name given to this festival which features 900 tribal participants from all over the country? – “Vanaj 2015”

15. Union Home Ministry on 12 February 2015 constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to re‐investigate the

95



1984 Sikh riots of Delhi. This was done as proposed by the G.P. Mathur Committee recently. Who is heading this newly constituted 3‐member SIT? – Pramod Asthana (IPS)

16. Who was confirmed as the new US Defence Secretary by the US Senate on 12 February 2015? – Ashton Carter

17. FMCG major ITC has purchased which two famous brands of Johnson & Johnson (J&J) as announced on 12 February 2015? – ‘Savlon’ and ‘Shower To Shower’

18. What was the total vote share of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in this historic and mammoth Assembly win? – 54.3%

19. Nepal constituted two commissions on 10 February 2015 to look into allegations of human rights abuses and disappearances during the country’s decade‐long civil war. This civil war between state forces and the Maoist rebels ended in which year with a peace agreement? – 2006

20. Social networking giant Facebook recently forged partnership with which Indian telecom company to provide free Internet access in the country as announced on 10 February 2015? – Reliance Communications Limited (RCom)

21. 15th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) concluded on 7 February 2015 at Delhi. This annual event has gradually emerged as one of the most important events on issues related to global sustainability. Which entity organizes this summit every year? – The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)

22. The 10th edition of India‐Mongolia Joint Military Training Exercise concluded on 6 February 2015. The 15‐day long exercise saw the participation of Indian and Mongolian armies. This exercise was held at which place? – Gwalior

23. Who took over as the new Director‐General of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) on 5 February 2015? – Dr. M.O. Garg

24. Who was selected for Jnanpith Award for 2014, which is the most prestigious literary honour in India? – Bhalchandra Vanaji Nemade (Marathi litterateur)

25. What important event associated with the newly constituted “NITI Aayog” took place on 6 February 2015? – The first meeting of NITI Aayog was held on this day

26. Union Govt. on 6 February 2015 announced that four SAARC countries are in the process of signing a path‐breaking Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA) to provide seamless transit of passenger, personal and cargo vehicles among these countries. Which are these 4 countries? – India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan

27. Chinese e‐commerce giant Alibaba’s online financial service company Ant Financial Services Group (Ant Financial) acquired 25% stake in which Indian mobile commerce firm on 5 February 2015? – Paytm

28. The largest share sale by a private sector entity and the second largest fund‐raising by selling shares in the secondary market in India took place on 5 February 2015 when a leading private bank raised Rs. 9,880 crore. Which bank is this? – HDFC Bank

29. Which city on 5 February 2015 took the first step to become the first WiFi enabled metro city of India? – Kolkata

30. Which NASA spacecraft sent new pictures of dwarf planet Pluto that were released by the agency on 4 February 2015? – New Horizons

31. The Reserve Bank of India on 3 February 2015 constituted a committee to evaluate applications received for the proposed small finance banks. Who is heading this committee? – Usha Thorat, former Deputy Governor of RBI

32. The Reserve Bank of India on 3 February 2015 constituted a committee to evaluate applications received for payments banks. Who is heading this committee? – Dr. Nachiket Mor, Director, Central Board, RBI

33. How many Indians were in the Hurun Global Rich List of billionaires that was released on 3 February 2015? – 97

34. The RBI deadline for applying for the payments banks ended on 2 February 2015. Which companies/groups are the prominent bidders for the payments banks which will offer services such as remittances and deposits? – Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd., Future Group, UAE Exchange India, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, IIFL, PayTM and Oxigen

35. Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has applied for a payments bank licence, the application deadline for which ended on 2 February 2015. It tied up with which bank for seeking this licence? – State Bank of India (SBI)

36. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 30 January 2015 constituted a 7‐member committee on urban cooperative banks (UCBs). The committee will primarily re‐examine and recommend appropriate set of businesses, size, conversion and licensing terms for the UCBs. Who is heading this committee? – R. Gandhi (Deputy Governor, RBI)

37. Who took as the new Chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) on 31 January 2015? – T. Suvarna Raju

38. Serena Williams won the women’s singles title of Australian Open 2015 on 31 January 2015 by defeating

96



Maria Sharapova. With this title win she overtook the Grand Slam title wins by tennis greats Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. This was her ………. Grand Slam singles title? – 19th

39. Who took over as the new Director General of the Indo‐Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) on 31 January 2015? – Krishna Chaudhary

40. India on 30 January 2015 revised its economic growth (GDP) for fiscal year 2013‐14 from the previously reported 4.7% to 6.9%. It also revised its GDP for 2012‐13 from 4.5% to 5.1%. What is the reason for this upward revision? – A change in the formula to measure the economy by the govt. and change in base year

41. Subhash Ghisingh, who passed away on 29 January 2015 at the age of 78, was the founder of which party associated with Gorkhaland movement of West Bengal? – Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF)

42. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu flagged off four Express trains simultaneously from Bengaluru remotely through Telepresence Service on 29 January 2015. Telepresence Service is a more efficient video conferencing service developed by which public sector undertaking (PSU) associated with the rail sector? – RailTel Corporation

43. Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara broke the world record for the most dismissals by a wicketkeeper in one‐day internationals (ODIs) on 29 January 2015. He achieved this feat when he reached his 473 dismissal against New Zealand in an ODI. Whose record he surpassed? – Adam Gilchrist (Australia)

44. Which marching contingents were jointly adjudged the best marching contingents in the Republic Day Parade of 2015 as announced by the Ministry of Defence on 29 January 2015? – Sikh Regiment and Brigade of Guards Regiment

45. What is the name of the impeached Sri Lankan Chief Justice who was reinstated by the new government led by President Maithiripala Sirisena on 28 January 2015? – Shirani Bhandaranayake

46. The US Air Force (USAF) on 28 January 2015 stated that it would use Boeing Co’s commercial 747‐8 airliner to replace its current fleet of two Air Force One presidential aircraft, which is one of the most visible symbols of the United States worldwide. Which aircrafts are used presently in the Air Force One fleet? – Boeing 747‐200Bs

47. Private sector IndusInd Bank launched a co‐branded credit card for football fans on 29 January 2015. It has tied up with which renowned English Premier League (EPL) club for this card? – Chelsea Football Club

48. Which country will host the ICC T20 World Cup for 2016 as announced by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on 29 January 2015? – India

49. Who was appointed as the new Foreign Secretary after the Union Govt., in a surprising move, sacked Sujatha Singh about seven months before her tenure on 28 January 2015? – Dr. S. Jaishankar

50. Which company reported quarterly profits of $18 billion on 27 January 2015 which is the largest profit in global corporate history? – Apple Inc.

51. U.S. space agency NASA on 27 January 2015 announced the discovery a star that is 11.2 billion years old and has at least five Earth‐size planets. What is the name given to this star, whose discovery could point to the existence of alien life? – Kepler‐444

52. During January 2015, excavations at which two Harappan sites in India was started as announced by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)? – Rakhigarhi (Haryana) and Binjor (Rajasthan)

53. In 2014 which airport claimed the title of the world’s busiest international airport from London’s Heathrow airport, which had held this coveted title for decades? – Dubai International Airport

54. What is the name of the asteroid that flew past the Earth on 26 January 2015? – 2004 BL86

55. What is the name of the first female bishop in the Church of England who was ordained as a bishop on 26 January 2015? – Libby Lane

56. 14‐time Grand Slam singles champion Rafael Nadal was ousted from the Australian Open on 27 January 2015 by which player? – Tomas Berdych (Czech Republic)

57. What are the names of the two army personnel who were posthumously conferred with the Ashok Chakra, India’s highest peacetime military honour, on 26 January 2015 on the occasion of country’s 66th Republic Day? – Late Major Mukund Varadarajan and late Naik Neeraj Kumar

58. Who took over as the new Prime Minister of Greece on 26 January 2015 after his party scored a historic win in the landmark elections held in the country? – Alexis Tsipras

59. R.K. Laxman, believed to be the greatest cartoonist India has produced, passed away on 26 January 2015 in a hospital in Mumbai at the age of 93. He was best known for his daily cartoon strip “You said it” that featured the common man, his legendary creation. This iconic carton strip was published in which newspaper? – ‘The Times of India’

60. Who won the Miss Universe for 2015 that concluded on 25 January 2015 at Miami in (United States)? – Paulina Vega of Colombia

97



61. U.S. President Barack Obama arrived on 25 January 2015 on his historic 3‐day visit to India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke with protocol to meet the President as he landed in New Delhi. What is a historic fact associated with this India visit of Barack Obama? – He became the first sitting U.S. president to visit India twice

62. India and the United States signed three Memoranda of Understandings (MoUs) on 25 January 2015 as part of Indian Government’s ambitious “Smart Cities” scheme. Under these MOUs, the U.S. would assist India in developing three smart cities to be developed in which cities? – Allahabad, Ajmer, and Visakhapatnam

63. Union Government announced 104 Padma awards consisting of the Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri on the eve of country’s 66th Republic Day on 25 January 2015. How many personalities were named for Padma Vibhushan, which is country’s second highest civilian award after Bharat Ratna? – Nine (9)

64. Who became the first ever woman officer to lead the ceremonial Guard of Honour by leading the Guard of Honour contingent that was inspected by the U.S. President Barack Obama at Rashtrapathi Bhavan on 25 January 2015? – Wing Commander Pooja Thakur

65. Who won the men’s singles title of the $120,000 Syed Modi International Grand Prix Badminton Championship on 25 January 2015 that was held at Lucknow? – P. Kashyap (India)

66. Who was appointed the new King of Saudi Arabia on 23 January 2015 after the death of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al‐Saud? – Salman bin Abdul‐Aziz al‐Saud

67. The European Central Bank (ECB) on 22 January 2015 announced what major step to revive the sagging European economy? – It announced the plan to launch a €1 trillion govt. bond buying programme that will infuse huge amount of money into economy

68. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 22 January 2015 came out with which guideline on loan cost for country’s commercial banks? – It directed all banks to display all costs associated with loans on their website

69. An Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) of the country claimed to have developed a 10‐inch netbook, which it claims could be the world’s cheapest, at around Rs 6,000. Which IIT has developed this netbook? – IIT Bombay

70. Who was named as the new South Korean Prime Minister by country’s President Park Geun‐hye on 23 January 2015 to replace Chung Hong‐won? – Lee Wan Koo

71. The 17‐time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer was ousted out of the Australian Open in the third round on

23 January 2015. Which unseeded player defeated him in this match? – Andreas Seppi (Italy)

72. Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” campaign on 22 January 2015. This campaign was launched from which district of Haryana which has amongst the lowest child sex ratios in the country? – Panipat

73. Union Government has planned to sell how much of its stake in oil marketing major, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), for which the Finance Ministry has invited proposals from merchant bankers and brokers? – 10%



76. What is the name of the Yemeni President who resigned from his post on 22 January 2015 due to pressure from Houthi rebels, with whom he had tried to enter into an agreement? – Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi

77. What will be the interest rate (notified on 20 January 2015) for investments in Sukanya Samriddhi Account (SSA), the special deposit scheme for girl child that was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during 2014 and is being launched on 22 January 2015? – 9.1% p.a.

78. State‐run Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and South Korean steel major Posco recently agreed to jointly set up a 3‐million‐tonne integrated plant in India. This plant, to be established with an estimated investment of Rs. 18,000 crore would be set up in which state? – Jharkhand

79. Union Government on 21 January 2015 launched a new plan that seeks to preserve and rejuvenate the rich cultural heritage of the country. What is the name of this plan? – National Heritage Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY)

80. Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF), believed to be Asia’ biggest literary event, was kicked‐off from 21 January 2015 at Jaipur. The 5‐day event is which edition of the festival which draws authors, poets and celebrities from all over the world? – 8th

81. What is the name of the 13‐year old Indian‐American student who recently became the youngest entrepreneur in Silicon Valley (US) as he launched a company to develop low‐cost machines to print Braille? – Shubham Banerjee

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82. A new milestone in neonatal care was achieved during January 2015 after a six‐day‐old baby girl’s kidneys and liver cells were given to two separate recipients after her heart stopped beating. This complex procedure was performed in which country? – United Kingdom

83. Which company retained its position as number one in global vehicle sales in 2014? – Toyota Motor Company

84. The Country Wide Tiger Assessment Report (CWTAR) for 2014 was released on 20 January 2015 by Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar. The report estimated the tiger population in the country at around 2,226, a rise of over 30% since the last count in 2010. Tiger population had dipped to 1,411 in 2006 but has improved since then. Which state has the largest number of tigers according to this report? – Karnataka

85. Which company overtook Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) to become the country’s most profitable private company for the quarter ended December 2014? – Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)

86. Which scheme of the Union Govt. was conferred with the Guinness record on 20 January 2015? – Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)

87. Micro‐blogging site Twitter acquired which Indian mobile phone marketing start‐up as announced by it on 20 January 2015? – ZipDial

88. China’s economy grew by 7.4% in 2014 according to the official data revealed by the Chinese Government on 20 January 2015. This was China’s slowest growth rate in how many years? – 24 years

89. Renowned political scientist and theorist Rajni Kothari passed away on 19 January 2015 in Delhi. He was the founder of which prestigious institution engaged in research in the field of political and human sciences? – Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS)

90. Who was appointed as the new Chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) on 19 January 2015 to replace Leela Samson who quit recently? – Pahlaj Nihalani (Noted Hindi film producer)

91. Union Ministry for Water Resources would celebrate year 2015‐16 as which year to spread the message the message of water conservation as announced on 17 January 2015? – ‘Jal Kranti Varsh’ (Water Revolution Year)

92. Union Ministry for Water Resources would celebrate year 2015‐16 as which year to spread the message the message of water conservation as announced on 17 January 2015? – ‘Jal Kranti Varsh’ (Water Revolution Year)

93. Which bank was ranked at highest place among Indian banks in the list of the Top 50 Most Valued Global Banks (in terms of market capitalization) that was

released by Bloomberg on 17 January 2015? – HDFC Bank

94. South African captain AB de Villiers scored the fastest ever one‐day international (ODI) century on 18 January 2015 as he scored his century of off just 31 balls against the West Indies in the ongoing ODI series. Whose world record he broke? – Corey Anderson (New Zealand)

95. Union Government on 16 January 2015 launched a new Rs. 200 crore venture capital fund (VCF) for the Scheduled Caste (SC) community with the objective of promoting entrepreneurship in the community. Which financial entity will act as sponsor, settler and Asset Management Company (AMC) for this fund? – IFCI

96. 24 children were selected for the National Bravery Awards 2015 as announced by the Union Government on 17 January 2015. Who were the winners of the prestigious Sanjay Chopra and Geeta Chopra Awards given under National Bravery Awards? – Master Devesh Kumar (Sanjay Chopra Award) and Gunjan Sharma (Geeta Chopra)

97. Who won the men’s and women’s singles title in the senior National Table Tennis Championships that concluded at Puducherry on 18 January 2015? – Soumyajit Ghosh (Men’s title) and Mouma Das (Women’s title)

98. Pankaj Advani won his seventh Senior National Billiards Championship title by winning the Nationals held at Kolkata on 17 January 2015. Whom he defeated in the final? – Dhruv Sitwala

99. Union Government on 16 January 2015 approved raising the quarterly buffer stock and strategic reserve limits of Food Corporation of India (FCI) for both wheat and rice. A change in FCI’s buffer stock is being done for the first time since which year? – 2005

100. Two US agencies NASA and NOAA on 16 January 2015 disclosed that year 2014 was Earth’s hottest on record. They also gave evidences to substantiate that people are disrupting the climate by burning fossil fuels that release greenhouse gases into the air. Which was the hottest year till 2014? – Year 2010

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